Bein' Friends
by Charlett
Summary: -MOTHER3- Lucas and his friends have finished their adventures. They've defeated the enemy and saved the world. Afterwards, however, Lucas disappears. His friends are determined to find him again, but what if he doesn't want to be found?
1. Prologue 1

Before I go further, while this IS a MOTHER 3 fic, it is DIRECTLY tied in with the end. If you haven't beaten the game, you may not understand everything. I will try to give out enough info in the story that you won't feel too dumb if you haven't, but remember, if you DON'T want spoilers, then DON'T read. It's really quite simple.

The name came from Catherine Warwick's "Bein' Friends", from the MOTHER 1+2 soundtrack. Because MOTHER 3 was about family, I wanted to make this story about friendship. Thus, that's where the name comes from.

Anyway, I hope you like it. Without Further Ado:

READ ON!

--

It was like waking up to a nightmare. Slowly but surely, practically everyone on the island came to mindlessly obey that self proclaimed king. Even the lumberjack, Isaac, had donned the uniform of the Pig Army and swore that he would destroy Lucas for his defiant stance against the master of the island. Everyone had died inside and had become soulless creatures; wandering the island and praising the one person who deserved that honor the least.

And then, pandemonium. Deep within the earth, a young psychic, the chosen one, grasped at a tiny needle and drew it from the earth like a post apocalyptic King Arthur. His friends and family, living and fading away, were staring, anxious, as he fulfilled his destiny. There was a loud grumble from what sounded like some sort of beast, and the earth quaked. High above the group, the largest city on the island, New Pork City, shuddered and shook. Researchers panicked. Chimeras fled. Thomas roared in anger as the earthquake interrupted his video game. The citizens looked around wildly, wondering about just what was happening.

It was quite simple: the end of the world was happening.

Osohe Castle, Tazmily's pride and joy, tumbled to the ground, reduced to rubble in only a few minutes. Club Titiboo was ripped from its foundation and fell into a gaping chasm caused by the earthquake. The scientists at the Chimera Lab tried in vain to escape the carnage, but both they and their creations were sucked into a wind tunnel and tossed around like dolls.

All around the island, things were being destroyed.

A red rope with the characteristics of a snake swerved his head about to look at the chaos and horror in New Pork City, as well as the darkening sky. There was an outline of a giant creature of unimaginable power on the horizon. A water cyclone, more powerful than even the Lord of Whirlpools could create, appeared from the ocean a scant few miles from Tazmily's beach. The ground began to tremble around him, and Rope Snake couldn't help but cry out in horror. Darting here and there, he rushed to escape the tree that threatened to fall directly on him.

Water cyclones, land cyclones, earthquakes, and now the island was being pelted with huge, flaming stones that he felt were the size of Osohe Castle itself. Rope Snake wanted to get as fast as he could to the safest place he could think of.

However, he couldn't really think of any place that could be safe from all of this. In his panicked state, he didn't try to stop and think, he simply slithered anywhere he could go. He just passed the ruined city's arcade when a huge crack formed in the earth. The Rope Snake felt a hiss of hot steam rise from the jagged chasm, and a screech was heard from beyond the horizon. It might have been the dragon for all he could tell. The poor snake had no idea what to do. The steam burst at him so fast that his tiny body was sent hurtling into the sky and then was drawn down into the chasm below.

The snake wondered how his friend Duster was doing as he fell into the chasm. He certainly hoped his friend was faring better than this. The pain was unbearable; it was so hot. It was as if he was being thrown into Hell itself. The chasm was beginning to close. The Rope Snake cursed his luck; he would die being crushed by the chasm rather than falling and landing on the bottom where he would starve to death. _Which would be a better way to die? _he wondered. It didn't matter; what was done was done. He would be crushed and eaten by the earth itself. The chasm began to close, and all he could see was a tiny pinprick of light before it was swallowed up by the darkness.

--

It was like waking up from a nightmare. It certainly is an odd feeling, standing within the darkness. The world they knew was gone, and it was replaced by something unfathomable. How could one from Earth ever contemplate a world of complete nothingness? It certainly seemed impossible for their friend from another world to walk normally because it seemed unable to fathom such a world. It couldn't move about without bumping into things.

"Hey!" Duster called out to their friend. "Lucas wanted to see you!"

Their friend had a tough time following Duster. The visitor nearly tripped over a doorknob and ran full force into a rather large capsule. Rubbing its nose, the next step their friend took was one that was regretted.

"Watch where you're stepping!" The cricket cried as their friend nearly stepped on the incredibly strong Okera, "A cricket's life is a life too you know!"

Their friend gave a surprised gasp feeling the Rope Snake suddenly slither up its leg. He ended up wrapping himself around its arm, "Hey, have we met before?" Duster continued to look for Lucas and tell him the whereabouts of their friend. Their friend raised that arm, inquiring Rope Snake.

"Yeah, my name's Rope Snake. Although I was thinking of changing it to 'Snake Rope', what do you think?" Their friend smiled at the snake, "Yeah, I'm thinking a more idyllic life would be best for me. Maybe Duster and I can hang out some more. It was fun jamming with him when he was part of that band."

Their friend thanked the Rope Snake (sorry, Snake Rope) for helping them through all their adventures, and the Snake Rope blushed even more red than normal as he slithered down their friend's body and went off again.

"Lucas! Lucas, where are you?" Duster called out as their friend tried in vain to walk through the world without bumping into things (did it about seven more times, actually). One time, it bumped into Kumatora accidentally. The woman whirled around; she was hiding her face,

"Kumatora?" The good thief questioned.

"Huh? Oh… it's you…" She muttered, looking at both Duster and their friend. She wiped her eyes, which looked like they were becoming puffy in the darkness, "I… I never thought it'd turn out like this. It's a little dull here right now, but… but for some reason…" She sniffled lightly, and Duster looked extremely surprised, "but for some reason… I can't stop crying… I wonder… I wonder what this feeling is…" Their friend turned to Duster, who was staring at Kumatora,

"…You know, Kumatora, this is the first time I've seen you cry, I think…" If it wasn't so gloomy, one would see a tinge of red coloring on his face, "You look kind of cute like that." The former princess glared daggers at her friend.

"Don't get used to it," She muttered, wiping her eyes, "Where's Lucas, anyway? I think he wanted to speak with you," She motioned to their friend, "Really, you come here after what happened and he flies the coop. I'll give him a firm beating when I find him!" She stopped looking so mad, and suddenly began to cry again, burying her face in her hands.

"W…why won't the tears stop…?" She cried, rubbing her red eyes, "Why do I feel like this…?"

--

Their friend had to leave. It was probably for the best, as people were getting a little annoyed that it was running into everyone. It waved goodbye as everyone thanked their friend, and if you strained your ears a little, you could hear someone sniffling. Duster looked around, through the crowd; Lucas was nowhere to be found.

"Thank you so much!"

"Thanks!"

"Goodbye!"

"Take care of your world!"

"You don't want your world turning out like this, huh?"

"Good bye!"

"Bye!"

"Don't forget us!"

"Bye bye!"

"We'll miss you!"

"Thanks again!"

"Come visit us lots! Let's play again!"

"Goodbye!"

There was a short moment of silence where no one knew what to say. Then, a small voice rose out of the dark.

"…and… thanks."

Their friend was gone, and still there was no sign of Lucas…

--

It was like waking up to a dream. Hours after their former world's cataclysm, the residents of the dark world curled up and went to sleep, their bodies absolutely worn out. They say that when a person sleeps, said person will sleep until he or she has the energy to continue that life. If that is the case, then the residents must have slept for a million years, perhaps longer, before they truly felt ready to awaken.

And there came a time when they were. Kumatora's eyes fluttered open, and Fuel sat up and yawned. The two noticed something very different from when they had fallen asleep. Kumatora rubbed her hands across the ground. She could feel the soft coolness of grass. It was then that she heard Fuel shout out, delighted. He leapt up and shouted at those around him:

"Everyone! Everyone! Wake up!" He demanded of the villagers who were still sleeping, "Look! Look! Grass!"

"There's ground!" Kumatora proclaimed in delight, standing up and looking about. Everyone else was beginning to awaken, blinking groggy eyes, "H… he did it! Lucas did it!" She pumped her arms in the air and cheered, "Lucas did it! Our world-!"

"Our world…" Fuel murmured in awe. He stood next to her as they looked off a large cliff over the world that Lucas and the Dragon had worked together to create for all living things, "It's… it's…"

"It's more beautiful then I had ever imagined…" Kumatora said in amazement, scanning the horizon, "Are we standing in some mountains? There's an entire range here! And there's a river going to that lake! Is that a desert?"

"Where's the ocean?" Fuel asked. Kumatora looked at the teenager, and he pointed, "Look! Look around you, there's no ocean!"

It was true. The world was so large that they could not even see the ocean from where they stood, "Does… does this place even _have_ an ocean?"

"I wonder…" Kumatora said, taking in the sights, "But it's… it's… it's so huge! Duster! Duster!" She turned around and stared at the one villager who wasn't awake and taking in the sights. Kumatora jammed her heel on his jaw, "Wake up, Duster! You're missing the whole thing!"

"I'm up! I'm up!"

Kumatora drew her foot back as the good (albeit lazy) thief sat up and yawned. He then turned to his friend.

"Now… what am I missi-" He couldn't help but stare in wonder at what he saw. Kumatora smiled at his look of awe as she placed her hands on her hips. All of Tazmily's old residents were standing together, looking over the cliff at their new home. The world had everything they could ever want. At the base of the mountain was a large lake, and a natural valley, perfect for farming and cultivating. Water… farmland, woodlands… Lucas picked the perfect location to place his friends and the town to keep them happy and healthy. Kumatora then gasped.

"Lucas!" She shouted, looking around, "Lucas! Lucas, where are you?" She began running down the mountain, hoping beyond hope that Lucas was still alright. Maybe he was at the base of the mountain? "Lucas! Lucas! Where are you? We're looking for you!"

"Speaking of Lucas…" Bronson said in thought as Duster rubbed his now bruised cheek, "There's no sign of Flint, either."

"Boney?" Duster dragged himself up with the help of his father, and he looked around, "Where's Boney?"

"Down here!" The township looked where the voice came from, and followed Kumatora's lead. She had found the tired, worn out dog only a few feet from the rest of the people, "Oh, Boney, how are you?" She asked, petting her friend and listening to him telepathically. Boney whined a bit.

"I'm not… feeling too well…" He told the former princess unhappily, "Where's Lucas…? Where's Flint…?"

Kumatora rubbed the dog's head, "I'm sure they're down the mountainside. We'll find them. You rest here with the Rope Snake."

"It's 'Snake Rope'!" the nearly forgotten snake hissed (it's what snakes usually do, though). Duster yawned widely, covering his mouth lightly and wiping sleepy tears from his eyes.

"Can I stay with Boney then? You know, in case he needs something?" Kumatora grabbed his cheek and dragged him down the way, grumbling about how useless her escorts were.

--

The town didn't see another soul. As the women worked hard to create shelters for their children and the men worked even harder to create lumber for permanent establishments, Kumatora dragged Duster all about the way, calling for Lucas, Flint, or any other person that could be in the world. Night began to fall, and Duster noticed that they were both getting pretty tired.

"Kumatora… We've been searching all day. I don't think they're around here…"

"They're here!" The woman replied matter-of-factly, still tromping through the woodlands, "We just haven't searched hard enough!"

"It's nearly dark! We really should get back to the settlement, Kumatora…"

She turned around, and pursed her lips, "…I just don't want to think of them out there, all alone, sleeping on the ground like that…"

"Lucas is a smart kid," Duster reassured his friend, "He's probably found a good place to set up shelter for the night. The big thing _we _need to do now is get back and set up shelters of our own." Kumatora glared at her friend, and he stared back at her.

"There's no point in hurting yourself for him. We'll find him, Kumatora. I promise." The two stared at each other, as if testing their strength against each other. Kumatora licked her lips in an agitated manner.

"You swear? Swear that we will find him, Duster!" The good thief blinked at her, and she stamped her foot to emphasize her statement. "Swear it! Swear that we'll find him together!" He wondered how hard she was holding her tears in, and he nodded.

"I swear, I swear that we'll find him. Even if we have to search throughout our new world… we will find him."

Kumatora looked like she didn't want to stop the search, but Duster always kept his promises. She nodded confidently. "Right, then. I'll take your word for it." And with that, she walked straight past him and meandered back to the settlement. Duster sighed lightly, happy that he could rest again, and began to hobble back to "New Tazmily", being sure to pick up any nuts, berries and anything else edible he found along the way.

To Be Continued...

--

Yeah, yeah, I know, it's about DUSTER, and KUMATORA. EWWWW, Duster's not Kawaii enough and Kumatora's not making out with Lucas enough! Worst story ever, totally.

Hope you like it either way. R+R all.


	2. Prologue 2

I guess I'll just keep uploading around here for a while. After the translation is finished, I'm sure more people will play the game and will be able to read this without spoiling themselves. So until then, I'll keep uploading.

But please, you guys, just try it out if you've played M3. I know you'll like it, I've really worked hard on making it good. Thanks a lot, and:

READ ON!

--

Two years had passed since the beginning of the new world. New Tazmily was steadily growing. Everyone did their best at their respective jobs. Tessie was a wonderful weaver, and spun the finest of linens, which were then given to Betsy so she could tailor clothes for the villagers. Paul and Linda would leave the town everyday to find the sand on the shores of the town's lake, and they would make glass for windows. Isaac worked hard to cut down the trees needed for housing, and it was Lighter and Fuel who helped build the houses and the furniture. It was only a year ago that Mapson seemed to have disappeared. He said that he wanted to make maps for all the locations in the world, and then come back to show them all to the residents of the town. All over Tazmily, people were putting in plenty of work, and the small village began to grow up.

Everyone looked to Kumatora as a source of leadership (as she once was Osohe's princess. Wasn't it obvious that she lead the people?), and the young woman offered her support without complaint. Boney tended to lie at her side as she barked orders to the villagers and made sure that everyone was living comfortably. The dog didn't seem to have much zest for life anymore, and he simply lazed about at the former princess's side, sighing every once in a while. Rida seemed to handle the change pretty well, and although he could now speak at any time he wanted, he seemed to prefer to keep his thoughts to himself. It was hard to teach an old dog new tricks, after all…

And Duster? He became a normal person. There was no reason for him to steal hummingbird eggs or save worlds, so aside from the routine search for Lucas everyday, he remained at his house, which, due to his lack of desire to improve it, was no more than a single room, really. Wes, whose house was a little bit bigger, did not pull punches when criticizing his son's pitiful home, but Duster had finally learned (with Kumatora's help) to ignore his father and live the way he wanted to. He found that his calling dealt with music; he worked hard and made instruments for the town. He was able to teach the children how to play their respective instruments and all the children from Al to Nicol were soon found with a flute or drum in their hands. It wasn't a very helpful trait that Duster gave the villagers, but the parents were happy to see that the younger children could do something with themselves.

And so, on most days, Duster would live in his tiny home, munch on some dried meat or nut bread, and play his bass for his roommate, Snake Rope, who slept in his messy dresser. Life was good for the musician, until one night everything changed.

--

There was a knock on the door in the dead of night. Snake Rope poked his head from the open drawer of the dresser and groggily peeked at the door, which was trying its best not to crumble under the weight of the ferocious knocking. It was so annoying! Who could be pounding on the door at this hour! Surely, anyone in their right mind would wake up and go check on who was at the door! Except for Duster, of course. Yawning widely, the snake turned to Duster, who was splayed out on his tiny bed; he snored loudly, and his bed coverings were on the floor. The man certainly was not the cleanest of creatures. Snake Rope was about to awaken his friend by slithering out of the drawer and biting him lightly on the nose, but the knocking suddenly stopped.

Fearing the worst, Snake Rope ducked back into the drawer, and let his imagination run wild. Perhaps it was a man from the stars? What if it was the last remnants of the pig army, prepared to do his best friend in? Duster snored quite loudly about this moment, which really destroyed most of the tension, and only made Snake Rope mad at the fact that his friend was such a nut when it came to dramatic moments in a game. Or story. Or real life… it was kinda hard to tell sometimes.

It was then that the window just above the dresser that Snake Rope was dwelling in seemed to rattle. Snake Rope cried out and hid further in his dresser. The window began to open and Snake Rope could see the faint outline of a silhouette upon the wall across from him. He shivered lightly as the creature entered the room, quietly as a mouse (which seemed in contrast to its loud banging just moments before), and the person took a large whiff of the air around her. She gagged, and Kumatora plugged her nose.

"Good god, does he clean _anything_ in this place!?"

Snake Rope replied almost instinctively.

"One learns to get used to it." He froze when he realized that someone WAS in fact in the room, and he turned to stare into the eyes of the person who was breaking and entering. Kumatora stared back at him; she was crouching on the dresser. _She resembles a very tall, very skinny orangutan… _Snake Rope thought to himself.

The animal forgot that Kumatora was psychic, and could read his mind. The next thing he realized, he was being strangled.

"What was that?" She growled, "I oughta tie you into a square knot and see how long it takes for you to get out of it! Then I'll skin you alive and turn you into a pair of boots!"

"Mercy!" Snake Rope cried, flailing in her grasp as she stretched the snake, wondering how much tension was needed to snap him in two, "Mercyyyyy!!"

There was a rustle at the bed, and it was Kumatora's turn to freeze. An awkward silence passed as Duster, still in his day clothes, turned to stare at her, who was strangling his snake and standing on his dresser. Kumatora slid down from the dresser very slowly, and placed Snake Rope on the dresser, petting him lightly. Then, she placed her hands on her hips, and broke the silence.

"You know, you could try changing your clothes once in your life, Duster."

"Huh?" He muttered, blinking the sand from his eyes. He yawned widely and then suddenly remembered his manners, "…want some tea…?"

"You're kidding, right?" Kumatora asked, turning around to survey the house, "If there was any sort of food in this house, I'd deem it to be poisonous."

"You didn't have to come, then," Duster said as she went to rifle through his belongings. She found a bag and listened halfheartedly as she began to stuff what little he owned into it. "I mean, what kind of person breaks into houses through windows?"

"What kind of thief leaves his windows unlocked for anyone to enter and steal their stuff?"

"What kind of person steals all my stuff by going through the unlocked window when the door was unlocked as well?"

"Erk!" Kumatora stopped her rifling through his stuff for a brief moment, but she regained her composure quickly, "Well, it doesn't matter, anyway!" She said, glaring at Duster as if daring him to even_ think_ something that went contrary to what she said. The musician gulped and Kumatora turned back to stuffing things in. "The fact of the matter is, you need to pack."

"Why's that?" He said nonchalantly, sliding out of his bed and completely ignoring the fact that she was grabbing his unmentionables and stuffing them into the already overstuffed bag.

"Because I'm tired of waiting. It's been years, Duster, and there's been no sign of him. This world is huge. I walked for an entire day and saw no hint, no sign of an edge. He could be anywhere, and we're going to find him." Finally, Kumatora was finished stuffing what little clothes he had into his pack and thrust it into his hands, "We're leaving, and we're going to find Lucas. You promised we would, so I'm making sure you keep your promise."

"But… but the town…" Duster began, frowning at the thought of leaving them alone.

"They'll get along without us," Kumatora interrupted matter-of-factly, "After all, what kind of village needs a musician and princess, anyway? Useless."

"I would think a leader's pretty important to the growth of a town," Duster said as he shouldered his bag, "You know… leading's a big job…"

"Yeah, and when Rida led, he was the greatest leader ever, I'm sure." Kumatora shot back. Duster couldn't say anything to that; Rida never really did lead much, did he? During his thoughts, Kumatora grabbed him and dragged him for the door. He then remembered something very important.

"Oh! The egg!" He wriggled from the former princess's hold and went to go collect the Hummingbird's Egg, "I had it hidden away, so that it'd be safe."

"Hmm? You're still holding onto the egg?" Kumatora asked, tapping her foot, "It's not really necessary for you to protect it anymore, is it?"

"Yeah…" Duster replied as he drew back a piece of the floorboard. There, among the dirt was a glittering, bright white egg with angelic wings. It seemed to embody very essence of purity itself, so it seemed silly to have the dirty thief place his dirt covered hands around it. He pulled it slowly out of its hiding place and wrapped his fingers around it, looking much like it was years ago, "I just don't think it's safe to leave it just lying about. Nothing has ever been made to do one thing alone, so maybe its role in this hasn't finished yet." Kumatora blinked at it over her friend's shoulder, and she frowned impatiently.

"Well, are we ready? We don't have all night, you know. I wanted to get out of here before the other townspeople figured out about this. I'm sure they'll think of something to keep us from leaving." Duster didn't say anything about that being a good reason about the fact that they _should_ stay, but snapped to attention when the young woman addressed him again, "Hey Duster. Shouldn't you say goodbye to Snake Rope?"

"Oh! Right." Duster really didn't forget about Snake Rope, he just forgot that the snake wasn't with him. It had become second nature to have Snake Rope pop out of his bag and mention something that was or sometimes wasn't needed. Placing the egg tenderly on the floor, he stood to speak with the red snake and say goodbye.

"So, you're leaving?" Snake Rope asked of his friend. Duster wasn't psychic, he really didn't want to be, but he could still understand the snake. It was just a bond between best friends. They really didn't need to speak to convey each others' feelings, kinda like a pair of friends who finished each others' sentences.

"Yeah, I suppose," Duster replied, shouldering his bag once again, "Can you take care of the place while I'm gone?"

Snake Rope looked around the room, and then turned back to Duster, "Yeah, I guess I could, if you don't need any help, I mean." Duster blinked.

"Are you asking if you can come?"

There was silence for a moment, and Snake Rope looked down at the empty dresser he was hiding in, embarrassed and shocked that he was found out.

"Well… I'm not much help… I'm just a snake with some rope characteristics," he really didn't believe in himself. "I'm just snake with rope characteristics. I'd be more useful if it were the other way around." The snake gave a gasp as Duster picked him up and let him slide onto his shoulders,

"What are you talking about? There are plenty of things we may need you for." Snake Rope waited for his friend to give an example, and the former thief came up blank. The snake sighed unhappily.

"You're rather small!" Duster suddenly said, "And therefore… you can fit in places we can't! You never know when that'll be important!" Snake Rope looked rather skeptical, but wasn't able to relay the feeling very well. Then, Kumatora suddenly gasped. Duster turned around swiftly to face her. "Kumatora, what's wrong?"

"I… the egg…" She was kneeling before the Hummingbird Egg, her eyes wide. She trembled lightly as she stared at the egg on the floor. "I… picked it up to bring it with us, and…"

"Oh yeah…" Duster scratched the back of his head. She hadn't touched it in so long, it wasn't a surprise she reacted that way, "You remember what the egg does, right?"

"I just… didn't think it'd remind me of… of that. Oh man, I thought I could have forgotten it too…"

"The egg was made to make people remember things they'd rather forget, otherwise its purpose would have been meaningless," Duster replied, "as it was supposed to remind us of everything that we lost." He waited a moment, and opened his mouth. He thought against it and chose something else to say, "Should I hold onto it?"

Kumatora stared numbly at the egg, nodding lightly. Whatever she saw must have shell shocked her, so Duster allowed her a moment as he picked up the egg. Visions of horror, of anger, and evil flashed through his mind. A cyber spider, a crowd of people that seemed like zombies, and the last time he had seen Lucas and Flint; the child had worn a face of pure determination that shone through the streaks of tears on his dirty face, and his father was missing his hat, staring at his son with a slight nod of his head.

Memories Duster would rather forget flooded his mind, and even he stood shocked for a moment, trying to calm the raging emotions that the memories brought up. Kumatora had stood and wiped her clothes of dirt by the time he began to calm himself down. The two looked at each other, and nodded slowly. Duster placed the Hummingbird Egg away in its hiding place, and turned to Snake Rope. "Are you ready?"

"As I'll ever be, buddy!" The snake replied, "The three of us, on another whirlwind adventure! It's just that we're missing your dad and we're not looking for anything to steal from a castle." Kumatora smiled and nodded.

"Yeah, let's go pick up Boney and leave before daybreak comes." She motioned for the man to follow her and she went to leave the house. She was getting tired of the smell anyway.

--

Crossing the village square, Kumatora gestured that they should remain quiet. She felt a little excited. It would be just like before, going on adventures. Once they find Lucas and Flint, they would have to bring them home, and that'd be an adventure in of itself! She was so psyched about it that she almost walked pass her destination. There, just outside her house, was Boney sleeping peacefully. He was snoring lightly, and didn't seem like he noticed anything around him. Some watchdog he was.

"Hey, Boney! Boney!" Kumatora poked the dog's side, and he moved groggily, grumbling a bit before going back to sleep. Kumatora frowned and lifted one of his ears. "Boney! Wake up!"

"Uuuuwaaaan…!" Boney whined, looking up at the one who woke him. His ears were still ringing, so it was hard to think straight, "What is it, Kumatora? It's the dead middle of night!"

"I know! Isn't it the perfect time to make escapes from sleepy, little towns like this?" She said, smiling at her friend, "Come on, Boney, we're all leaving to find Lucas and Flint! It would be nice to have you along."

Boney stared at Kumatora, who was still holding his ear in her hand. The dog whimpered a bit, and looked away from her and down at the floor, "I… I won't go."

Kumatora looked confused for a moment, and then laughed. She released his ear, placed her hands on her knees and peered down at him. "Oh, Boney, don't joke around like that. Come on; let's go find your owners."

"Dogs don't live as long as humans, you know…" Boney murmured, stretching a bit, "It's been two years since and I thought that all of that was behind me…You can't see so well in the dark, but I'm sure you've seen me graying all over. I'm old, Kumatora. I'm not as fast as I was, and I'm not as strong, either. Also…I'm tired." Kumatora's eyebrows turned upward as the dog continued, "I'm tired of losing people. They're my family too… I lost Hinawa… I lost Claus… and now I've lost Flint and Lucas… I don't want to think about it anymore…"

"But-"

"But what? What if they're out there?" The dog made a snort that sounded like a scoff, but Duster wasn't too sure. "I'm tired. I'm tired of losing things. I don't even want to lose you, but you'll leave no matter what you say. So I want you to do one thing for me." He looked back up at Kumatora. "I'll protect the town for you until you return. All I ask is that when you do, you do your best to bring them home. If you don't come back with them, then I'll know."

Kumatora looked mad that the dog refused to assist them, but she understood his plight, so she nodded at him. "Yeah, Boney, I'll search the whole world over, no matter how large it is. Then, when I find out what happened to them, I'll bring them back, and I'll bring them back alive. Because they're alive, and I'll make sure they stay that way!"

Boney continued to look at her while Duster tried to piece together the one-sided conversation. (To him at least.) The dog snorted again and shook his head,

"You never change. That's what I like about you. Take care of yourself and you too, Duster. I'll wait until you come back, and that, I promise."

Kumatora opened her mouth, but closed it when Boney went back to sleep. She stood up and turned to Duster.

"Looks like we're on our own."

"Well now…" Kumatora nearly jumped when another voice was heard next to them, "I wouldn't say that…"

"Fuel!?" The woman nearly screeched when she realized who had spoken to them, "What are you doing out here? It's in the middle of the night!"

"I had to take a wiz," Fuel replied a-matter-of-factly with a slight shrug of his shoulders. "And then when I was going to head back in my house, I heard you shouting for Boney. You know, you really should keep it down. People are trying to sleep outside."

Kumatora groaned and glared at Duster as if daring him to speak up about it. He turned away and whistled innocently. She then turned back to Fuel.

"Well! Well then, I was just having a… a discussion with Duster out here. Yeah."

Fuel turned to Duster and then turned back to Kumatora. He then clicked his tongue with a thoughtful frown on his face.

"Uh huh. Discussion…sure."

"Wanna make something of it, punk?" Kumatora looked prepared to punch someone's lights out.

"You're leaving, aren't you?" Fuel seemed keen on changing the subject. Kumatora turned to Duster. Was it that obvious? "I mean, you're all packed up with overflowing bags, and it's been who knows how long since I've seen Rope Snake ("Snake Rope!!" the snake cried in anger) out and about. You're leaving for a long while, aren't you?"

The two weren't sure what to do. Should they lie through their teeth or come clean? Fuel was a smart kid, so it was probably for the best that they told him the truth.

"Yeah, Fuel, we're leaving," Duster said. "We're going to go search for Lucas and Flint and bring them home. I know you'd rather have us stay here, but…"

"Oh, is that it?" Fuel asked with a shrug. The two blinked at him. "Everyone assumed you guys were going to do it sooner or later, so I guess now's as good as any, before we all die from the tension."

"Oh!" Kumatora said, looking a little better. "Well, that solves one problem. Come on, Duster, let's blow this popsicle stand."

"Why are we blowing up popsicle stands…?" Duster started to head off after her and stifled a yawn.

"…Well obviously it's because… um… You know what? I have no idea."

The two walked off, leaving Fuel to his own devices. The teenager bit his lip in thought, and turned around, rushing to his home as quickly as he could. A little while later Duster and Kumatora found themselves being called after. The young man was able to catch up to the two, as he was young, and still agile. He had his backpack, and was dressed in his finest traveling boots.

"Hey! Hey!" He waved his hands at them as he ran. A coil of rope was wrapped around his shoulder, and he looked hunched over from his over laden backpack.

"And I thought you said to keep it down!" Kumatora hissed, turning to face the young man. "Go to bed, Fuel. It's late and you have a big day tomorrow. What's the point in talking to someone you won't see in a while? Hell, if we're unlucky, it'll be a year or two before we return to New Tazmily."

"Kumatora…" Duster began. She turned to him, and he elaborated by gesturing to the teenager, "I don't think he wants to wish us goodbye…"

"Hey, Princess!" Fuel said, still stuck (like most of the residents) in "Kumatora is a princess of a made up kingdom, but she's still a princess!" mode, "Can I come along? I promise I won't be a burden! I've chopped up lots of wood, so I'm really strong and I know how to swing things! I could hit anything that could attack us!"

"I don't think that's going to be what our main problem will be, Fuel," Duster said. "Most, if not practically all, of the world is uncharted. Wild animals will be the least of our troubles. We won't be able to sleep in a shelter, so pneumonia's a common worry, as well as food issues. We'll really be roughing it with absolutely nothing but the clothes on our backs." Duster couldn't be sure that they were paying attention to him. When Duster talked for more than two seconds, he always ended up talking so much that people would just tune him out after a while. It's why he never took to talking too often.

"Not necessarily!" Fuel suddenly smirked widely. "I made this axe myself!" He drew out his pride and joy, showing off the craftsmanship of the stone axe in his hands. "You see, what I had to do was sharpen the stone down nicely with a grinder that Dad made, and then I hafted it in by wedging it into this firm branch of wood. But everyone knows that that wouldn't be good enough, right? Right. So I had to…"

"Th… thanks… Fuel, but I don't think we need to know much more," Kumatora sighed. "Either way, that's a smart idea. We'll need to be able to cut wood for just about everything, so I think you'll be our most valuable member!" The teenager blushed.

"Aww, you don't mean that!" Kumatora smirked and shrugged, giving him a pat on the shoulder.

"Don't be so modest."

"Ok, then I won't," Fuel said, smirking. Kumatora gave him a playful punch on the shoulder before turning to Duster.

"So, shall we be off?" Duster nodded and they began to make their way past the fields into the great unknown. As they walked, the four (Remember that Snake Rope is here, too) each promised silently to Flint and Lucas that they would bring them home. Home, where they belonged.

"Wait a minute." Kumatora suddenly said. She turned to the others, "Where do we go, anyway?"

The three stopped walking and stood in utter silence. Where would one go to look for one's friend who disappeared two years before? Fuel spoke up.

"How about the mountains? Lucas always loved to play in the mountains; maybe that's where he is!" He was about to continue and then he stopped. "Oh wait, weren't we in the mountains when we woke up?"

"What about the ocean?" Snake Rope offered. "He might be around the ocean, right?"

"Yeah!" Kumatora looked to the red snake who lingered on his friend's left shoulder, "Sounds right, Snake Rope!" Fuel blinked, as he couldn't understand the snake, and felt a little left out of the loop. "After all," she continued, "Lucas always loved the ocean, didn't he?"

"He certainly seemed to enjoy being under the water…" Duster said, deep in thought. "Although I don't think he enjoyed the oxygen tanks much."

Kumatora's eyes widened and a bright blush appeared when the tanks came to mind. Even Duster had a bit of red coloring his cheeks. It really wasn't their most shining moment during that adventure.

"So how do we find the ocean?" Fuel was looking a little discouraged. "No matter how far I strayed from the village, I've never seen it."

The four came upon yet another quandary. How to locate Lucas now? They never really thought about how vast the new world could be. Kumatora, however, knew that the best way to take on supposedly impossible tasks was to take it one step at a time.

"Maybe if we head to Lake Hinawa, we'll be able to think of something there. It's the best clue we have."

The group looked at each other and shrugged. It was as good idea as any. Kumatora led the way, with Fuel following close behind. Duster took up the rear, yawning all the way. He wasn't sure why they couldn't have just left during such an ungodly hour. He assumed it suited Kumatora's demonic nature; he should have known.

--

Lake Hinawa was gentle and calm, much like the woman it was named after. Fuel immediately set to the task of taking out his clay cup and filling it with cool water. He quickly checked to make sure that there was nothing in it and downed it in a flash. The lake's waters tasted so good! However, Kumatora and Duster took to thinking as Fuel took another cup.

"So, we're here at the lake and…" Duster tilted his head one way and then the other. Neither way seemed to make him think better, "And my mind is a blank."

"Water water water ocean salt…" Kumatora began. She snapped her fingers as she thought, and then spoke up, "Well, we all know that fresh water always tends to find its way to the ocean somehow, doesn't it?" Duster turned to her and blinked.

"I dunno," he replied with a shrug, "does it?"

"Ahhh!" Fuel said, wiping his lips of water, "I love Lake Hinawa's water so much! It tastes so nice!" He turned around to face his friends, "You know; it's so much better than the mountain water we get back in town!"

Kumatora put her hands on her hips and frowned with disappointment at the teenager, "What are you talking about? The water from Mt. Geon tastes much better than Lake Hinawa's water!"

"Why are we fighting over this?" To Duster, the argument just seemed so silly, "I mean, doesn't the mountain water go down to the lake anyway? It's pretty much the same water… wait!"

The man stopped as something hit him like a well aimed PK Thunder. He stared and thought and thought and stared, and Fuel waved his hand in his face.

"What's up, Duster? You thought of something?"

Duster looked down at Fuel after snapping from his stupor, and he nodded, "Yeah, I think I got something."

"Well then, spill it!" Kumatora demanded, stomping her foot to emphasize the statement. They didn't have forever, after all!

"Lake Hinawa is connected to two rivers, right? The River Geon that comes down from the mountain and the River Hinawa that heads to the south, right?"

Kumatora shrugged, "So?"

"So…" Duster counted on his fingers to keep his thoughts straight, "The water starts high and goes down; it ends up in the lake, and it's gotta go somewhere, right? If we follow the river downstream, it'll keep going until it can't go any further." He pointed across the lake at the river previously mentioned, and nodded, "If we follow the river, that's where the ocean is. Does that sound right?"

Kumatora was silent for a moment as she turned the information over in her head. Then, she crossed her arms and glared at him, "Duster?"

"Yes, Kumatora?" Duster closed one eye, bracing for a beating.

"That is the smartest and greatest thing I have ever, ever heard you say! You're a genius!" Fuel blinked. Duster, a genius? Who would have thought? He then turned to look at Kumatora; she had brightened up considerably at the news.

"I dunno. When you think about it, it's kinda obvious," Fuel was about to say something else before he found Kumatora's fist beating down on his head.

"Are you saying I can't tell what's obvious or not?" She growled. Fuel rubbed his aching head, muttering a bit as she clapped her hands together, brightening yet again, "Well, we got our first lead, anyhow, so let's go! Hurry, everyone!"

"I can't wait," Duster said. He sounded tired and having Fuel take the wind out of his sails didn't help. But he missed traveling, and he missed Lucas. He wanted to see the world, he wanted to see Lucas, and he wanted to get away from his father for a while. It was the perfect excuse to leave the village.

The group was on their way for the first real time now. All they had to do was search a huge world that could take months, if not years, to traverse, all the while looking for two people who for anyone's guess could be dead. It was like searching for a needle stuck in the ground, waiting the time that the chosen one would pull it from its resting place. There was a miniscule chance that it would ever happen in a few generations, much less a few months.

However, the group was never one to worry about chances. If they were, then Kumatora wouldn't have so much faith in her powers. It just wouldn't be her to hold back even though having someone struck by lightning or a falling star isn't something that pops up all that often.

And so starts their story: the story of Duster, Kumatora, Snake Rope and Fuel, as they left the safety of New Tazmily to find the one thing that was missing in their new, perfect world: their friend.

To Be Continued...

--

Hope you enjoyed it! Tell me some critique, I really would appreciate it.

So what'll happen next? Find out next time on:

DRAGON BALL...

No wait no that makes no sense.


	3. Chapter 1

I want to say thank you to those who have read so far, but I definitely want to thank AvroIllusion for beta'ing for me. Great author and great beta and GREAT critique-er. You really should check her work out. If she takes the time to critique your stuff, thank her for her time, because she really helps me out a lot, and she's so nice about it too.

I really could learn a thing or two about "Nice" critique...

Anyway! Hope you guys enjoy this part! It's the FIRST CHAPTER omfg! We're on a roll here! Totally!

And So:

READ ON!

--

The four travelers, former princess Kumatora, crippled musician Duster, woodworking teenager Fuel and Duster's friend, Snake Rope, had decided the only way to be reunited with their friend Lucas and his father Flint was to find the two themselves. They then decided to locate the ocean, absolutely certain that Lucas could be found along the river somewhere. That was why they were traveling downstream; it was the only way they could do it without getting lost.

And so we continue from where they left off.

Days passed as the four walked down the way. There was no shortage of water, obviously, but it was really hard to forage for food. Snake Rope found some tasty eggs in a sparrow's nest along the way, but a fight soon ensued over who would eat them, as there were only three eggs and four people and the eggs were pretty small. It was hard to find edible food, as the rushes that grew along the banks of the river were poisonous. Duster found that out the hard way when he threw up his lunch (and breakfast and dinner) after chewing on the rushes.

It rained on the third day, practically the whole day through. Kumatora had found a large, umbrella-like frond beforehand so she begrudgingly allowed the others to stand under. Despite being able to build a light shelter to rest in, everything they owned was soaking wet, and poor Fuel ended up with a stuffy nose and a light cold. Although Kumatora was able to heal the stuffy nose, overall the teenager realized that traveling was definitely **not** as glamorous as he first assumed.

The group almost didn't realize the sun was going down on the ninth day; it was always so cloudy ever since it rained. Duster turned to their leader, eyes drooping.

"If we don't set up camp soon, Kumatora, we won't nearly have the energy to continue tomorrow."

"Please, Princess…!" Fuel said, making Kumatora twitch. She really didn't like being called that. "Let's set up camp!" Kumatora glared at the river, as if blaming their bad luck on its inability to be closer to the ocean. Finally, she turned around and placed her hands on her hips.

"Fine, fine!" She said, "Let's take a rest now. I'll go see if I can find anything to eat. Snake Rope, you're with me."

"Aww…" The snake groaned, slithering along the ground after the former princess. He never liked foraging… Every time he found something to eat like a rodent or bird, Kumatora would take it and see if it was edible for the others in the group. It really wasn't fair; they were omnivores so he should have first dibs on meat!

"Well then, Fuel, I guess it's up to us to set up a fire," Duster said, "Are you sure you can do it, or have you not recovered from your cold?" Fuel shivered and nodded.

"I think I can take it… jeez… it's colder than I thought… why aren't you shivering, Duster? It's freezing out here!" Duster frowned as Fuel shivered; it didn't seem to cold out. The kid really had been working hard, and it was beginning to take its toll on him. Duster shook his head.

"Fuel, let me take care of collecting firewood. I have another blanket you can use. You're too tired to work," the man said. The teenager looked distraught at the thought.

"I can't leave you to do all the work! I'm not useless! Let me help!" He grasped as his axe and tromped off to find a nice log and some tinder.

"Fuel! Take a rest, Fuel, you need to…" Duster called out to the young man to no avail. He sighed lightly as the kid continued off; it shouldn't be this hard to keep a kid in line, should it? He respected Lighter for raising the kid on his own. Duster grasped at his blanket, slung both his and Fuel's bag over his shoulders, and trudged on after the teenager.

Fuel looked fine enough as he hacked a bunch of wood from a rather small tree. The shrubbery near it made for nice tinder, and soon the two were walking back to where they had split up before. Duster tried his hardest to get the kid to at least wrap himself up in a blanket, but Fuel brushed him off.

"I'm an adult! I don't need people watching out for me like I'm a kid or something!"

Duster sighed. If only Kumatora were here to kick the kid into shape. Traveling uncharted lands was one thing, but babysitting sick kids were a totally different thing!

"Well, make yourself useful!" Fuel suddenly said as he dropped the wood on the floor and began stamping out a location for the campfire, "Make a shelter or something! We still have those sticks I found, right? That'll make a nice tent."

Duster smiled. Oh man, he liked the sound of that! "Right, I'll see what I can do," he said, turning around and unpacking necessities for tent building.

--

In no time, the camp was made and Kumatora was walking back with a handful of items for eating, "Here's some nuts… and I found some berries… and look here! I found some sweet grass; I think we can make something out of it. We really need to make a basket to hold all this stuff, huh?"

"How about you, Snake Rope?" Duster asked of his friend as the red snake slithered up to his shoulder.

"Blech! All I could find was a few beetles!" Snake Rope hissed, "They taste so horrible!"

"I wouldn't doubt that."

"What I could give for a nice, succulent Rowdy Mouse by now…" The snake whined, "They wriggle so nicely going down…" Duster was so glad he hadn't had anything to eat for the past few hours; otherwise he'd probably have thrown up yet again.

While handing all her foodstuffs to Fuel, Kumatora managed to catch sight of Duster's work.

"A tent!" She gasped with delight. "Did you set it up, Duster?"

"Well… Fuel found the supports for it, but I did my best to set it up. Hopefully it'll stay up through the night."

"That's great! Let's have our food and rest for the night!" Kumatora seemed energetic. Duster couldn't be happier to hear that, and went to ration the food. It was hard to give the other two extra portions without them noticing that he had only given himself a small amount, but Fuel needed to keep his strength up, and Kumatora… well… they needed her far more than they needed him.

When it was time to hand the rations out, he got away with only a small glare from Kumatora, as if she were staring into his soul. He was only a little put off by the look, but got by without too much questioning on her part. Well, that was one problem solved!

And sure enough, another one popped up.

"Well, there's only one tent. Who's going to use it?" Fuel asked as he sipped a warm liquid out of one of the cups he brought. He didnt really want any of the strange stuff but Duster insisted. He didn't even know if that sweet grass stuff would work. Duster noted that Fuel was beginning to sweat a little by the light of the fire, and he looked rather flushed.

"Well, it's obvious, isn't it?" Kumatora explained, "I mean, men love sleeping under the stars. It's a fact!"

"Yeah sure…" Fuel muttered. He shuddered lightly and looked down at his sweet grass concoction. Duster looked up at Kumatora.

"Kumatora, could you share the tent with Fuel?"

"Huh? What do you mean?" Kumatora looked back at him with a quizzical look. "I mean, since when have I ever let a man into my tent? Never, that's when!"

"Yeah, well… I think he needs it." He gestured towards the sickly kid, and Kumatora got the hint.

"Ugh, fine," she muttered with a roll of her eyes. "Hey kid, come on, get your blankets. Remember to get enough water from the river. You look like you need it."

"First Duster, now you?" Fuel muttered, coughing a bit, "I'll be fine tomorrow, I just need to-" Kumatora grasped the teenager's ear and dragged him towards the river.

"They say you can take a horse to water, but you can't make him drink," Kumatora released Fuel at the bank of the Hinawa River, and she gave him a death glare, "I think it's safe to say that 'they' obviously never met me."

"Fiiiiiine!" Fuel groaned, taking a few cups of water from the river and drinking it quickly. Duster wondered if the only way to get kids to listen was to yell at them. It certainly seemed to be the case here. Either way, the child was finally finished with his drink, and the two walked back to the camp.

"Here, Kumatora," Duster whispered as she walked past him. She stopped for a moment and he placed his blanket in her hands, "Fuel needs lots of rest and even more warmth. Take care of him for me, alright?"

She blinked at him, and then winked with a smile, "Of course! I won't let you down!"

"Thanks…" the musician replied, "If Fuel gets ill, the further we go on this journey, the worse it'll be for him. Plus, his dad'll kill us. We have to take good care of him."

"Really…" Kumatora muttered, glaring at the teenaged kid across the way, "He's like a kid we have to babysit. It's so annoying, it's just like-" She suddenly stopped, shivering lightly. Duster could only look away sadly. "Oh… oh Lucas…"

"I…it'll be okay, we'll find him…" Duster nodded brightly. He had to keep both their spirits up. "One step at a time, right?"

"Right."

"Good night, Kumatora."

"You too, Duster."

--

It shouldnt be so hard sleeping outside on the floor. Duster had done it many times before. Then why was it so hard to sleep after all was said and done? Maybe it was the fact that he had no blanket. Or maybe it was the fact that there were so many worries gnawing at him from the back of his mind. Would Fuel be able to handle traveling much further? Kumatora did her best, but she just wasn't as good at healing as Lucas was. The kid would only get worse if this kept up, and it would be up to Duster to take care of Fuel…

The musician turned on his side and thought about the new world. Perhaps if they were lucky, they could meet someone else. Maybe they could find another outpost; there **must** be others living in the world. New Tazmily's residents were only a minor amount of people still living when Lucas pulled that needle…

Even though he had so many worries, sheer exhaustion was beginning to overcome him; Duster's eyelids were beginning to feel heavy. He could only think one thing as he drifted off to sleep; it was almost like a prayer.

_Please, Lucas… Fuel needs help…_

To Be Continued...

--

Hope you guys enjoyed it. Review and critique. Thanks a lot!


	4. Chapter 2

Hey! People reminded me that I need to upload this crap! Guess what? I'm uploading this crap!

I'll try and insert breaks in the previous chapters too, just because I like this story too much to make it look like some thirteen year old wrote it. Seriously what is wrong with dashes to signal a change in scene? That makes no sense. Regardless, I shouldn't whine anymore and just keep going!

Read on!

* * *

Daylight broke the next morning, and Fuel refused to awaken. Duster rubbed his eyes and yawned widely, and Kumatora was looking over the teenager with a worried look in her eyes. "Fever," she said simply, looking at the man who had poked his head into the tent to check up on the two.

"Should have known," Snake Rope said quietly.

"Hey Fuel, how're you feeling?" Duster bit his lip as Fuel flailed in the tent, moaning about being too hot.

"We can't just wait here forever…" Kumatora groaned, "You stupid moron, you didn't want to slow us down and that's just what you've done!"

"Don't chastise the kid, he only wanted to help." Duster thought long and hard about what to do, and he nodded. "We'll pack up. Kumatora, can you heal him?"

The young woman shook her head sadly. "Not much. I may be able to ease the pain, but moving him may make it worse." She flailed angrily in the tent. "Dammit, I HATE being useless!"

"Do what you can then, I'll carry him," Duster said, "It's the best we can do." The former princess tried to speak to him, but he had already disappeared from the tent, intent on packing up what he could.

Kumatora sighed. "I-I suppose…" she moaned. She reached out and placed her hand tenderly on the teenager's forehead. It was hot. She didn't know what to do. With a sigh, she placed her index fingers on his forehead and concentrated. "Lifeup Beta! Healing Alpha! Lifeup Beta!"

The tent flashed with dull glows, and when Duster was ready to pack the tent up, Fuel had at least sat up. The teenager looked much worse for wear, but at least he was cognizant now. "Hey Duster…" he muttered.

"Good morning. You think you're up to being moved?" Duster asked.

"As I'll ever be… Can I at least walk?" Fuel asked, "I don't want to be carried like a chi…" He stopped and turned to Kumatora, who was, once again, giving him a death glare. "Yeah, I can be carried…"

And so, Kumatora took most of the luggage, and Duster found himself carrying the fevered teenager along the river with a snake on his shoulder, looking down on the feverish young man. Every once in a while, Fuel would grunt about his head hurting, and eventually the two got smart and began placing wet cloths on his forehead.

Suddenly, there was a cry from the woman. "Duster! Duster, look!" The two looked over the horizon; the morning mist was beginning to fade, and off in the distance was none other than… "We made it! Duster, you were right! There it is! The ocean!" Duster was never happier about being right than now.

Kumatora gave a whoop and rushed off towards the water. It took a little longer for Duster to walk there, but for Fuel's sake he moved a little faster. The teenager turned his tired head towards the ocean, and he smiled. "It's… just as beautiful… as I remembered it…" he murmured in delight.

"Want to take a rest at the shoreline?" Duster asked as he began to step onto the sandy beach.

Fuel grinned back at the musician. "I'd like that."

* * *

The group took a short break at the beach. Fuel took off his shoes and socks and placed his feet gratefully in the tide and Snake Rope basked in complete ecstasy on the heavenly hot sand while Duster and Kumatora planned their next move.

"It was quite obvious we wouldn't be finding Lucas immediately, but now where do we go?" Kumatora wondered as she let a handful of sand flow through her fingers. She looked angry but also a little sad about the way things were turning out.

"Well, we could go up one way…" Duster pointed towards the north, from which an older teen walked towards them. "…or the other way," and he pointed down south, from which no one walked towards them.

"Either way, we have no idea where any people are…" Kumatora muttered, grabbing her head in anger as the stranger walked up next to them, picked up a shiny seashell next to Duster, pocketed it, and continued on.

"Yeah, if only we could find some sort of settlement. Maybe they have some sort of medicine for Fuel…" Duster agreed, "but I really doubt there's anyone here for miles and miles."

The two sighed and sunk down, feeling rather put upon as the strange teenager continued on his way, searching for more seashells on the shore.

"Wait!" Kumatora shouted, leaping up and pointing an accusing finger at the stranger, "Who are you anyway!"

"Me?" The boy suddenly turned around. He had a woven bag filled with seashells, and he smiled brightly. "I'm just looking for seashells! Who are you?"

Duster stood and wiped his rear of sand, "My name is Duster. This is Princ… Kumatora." Snake Rope interrupted him as the snake slithered up his arm, and Duster stroked his friend's chin, "This is my friend, Snake Rope, and that's a fellow villager, Fuel. We've been traveling to search for someone."

"Maybe you know him," Fuel began. He turned a tired head towards the other teenager, his eyes half banked from tiredness. "You know… you ever heard of a person named Lucas? We're looking for him…"

"Lucas!" the stranger cried. The group nearly jumped at his sudden outburst, and, realizing he had spoken too loudly, quieted a bit. "You… you're searching for Master Lucas?"

"Master Lucas?" Kumatora turned to look at Duster, who stared back at her. They then looked at the stranger. "I know Lucas, but I don't know if he's a 'Master'. He's just a regular kid, you know?"

The teenager shook his head and smiled brightly at the thought of who he was talking about, "Master Lucas made this world. He's so wonderful for giving us this world to live in. In fact, Master Lucas was the first person I saw when I woke up in this world!"

"Really?" Kumatora asked, looking a little excited at meeting someone who knew where Lucas was. Even Duster and Snake Rope were looking up expectantly. "Who were you before the destruction of Nowhere Island?"

The stranger blinked, and stood for a moment in silence, as if thinking really hard on the subject, "I… I'm really not sure. I just met Master Lucas… and he explained to me that I was the first person he had met in the new world, so he gave me a name."

Duster's hand went instinctively to the Hummingbird's Egg's hiding place. Perhaps this guy just needed a jolt from the egg to remember who he was? "What did Lucas name you?" Kumatora suddenly asked.

Duster dropped the thought for then as the teenager puffed himself up. "My name's Bion!" he proclaimed loudly, pleased with his exclamation, "Isn't it the coolest name?"

"B…Bion." Kumatora blinked. Bion nodded in response.

"Yeah! That's my name! I really like it. So Master Lucas told me to live happily, and he even asked me to be his guardian!"

Duster opened his mouth and spoke a little too quickly, "A Guardian? Wait. Do you know where Lucas is right now?" He stopped speaking when Fuel suddenly began to cough. It was a rather long coughing fit, and Bion realized something was wrong.

"Is your friend sick?"

"No duh…" Fuel muttered, coughing into his fist again, "Hey Bion… could you take us to Lucas? He can probably heal me."

Bion looked like he was in thought. He crossed his arms, creased his face in concentration, and thought deeply, "Well… I can't take you to Master Lucas unless you're worthy, but if you know him, then I think he wouldn't mind if I took you to a place you could get some help."

"Really? A settlement? People? Some place of sanity?" Kumatora brightened at the thought, and she picked up her stuff. "Come on, Duster, let's go! Finally, other people to talk to!" Duster sighed with a light smile on his face. He wasn't really expecting this, but it was a blessing in disguise.

_Thanks Lucas, whether or not you heard me… thanks._

* * *

Fuel was napping in Duster's arms as Bion led Kumatora and the musician into a rather normal looking cave in the cliffs near the beach. It was rather dark, but Duster found that it wasn't that hard to see; it was as if the cave glowed with some otherworldly light. At that moment, the former princess gave a cry and clutched her head. The musician stopped everything to tend to her, and Bion shook his head knowingly. "Kumatora, Kumatora, what's wrong?" Duster asked.

"It's been… so long since I felt this kind of pressure…" she groaned, "last time I felt it, the world was ending…"

"What kind of pressure?" Snake Rope asked; he had popped his head out of Duster's bag to get a survey of what was going on.

"Psionic pressure, obviously," Bion replied, cocking his head, "It's really thick here, can't you tell?"

"Uhm…" Duster adjusted Fuel in his arms, "Not everyone in this world is psychic, Bion." The teenager blinked in surprise. Obviously he didn't quite know that. "So, will you be okay, Kumatora?"

"Ehh… it just feels like blocked sinuses. Really blocked. And it's in my head instead of my sinuses… I'll be fine."

"Either way," Snake Rope continued, feeling a little put upon that no one had listened to him until now, "Where's this settlement? I can't wait for these guys to get some decent food so they'll stop killing my live victims."

"It's right here!" Bion proclaimed, standing on an outcropping that overlooked the magnificent cave. Too bad the magnificent cave held nothing.

Kumatora winced from the pain in her head. "I don't mean to be a downer, Bion… but there's nothing here…"

"But you can feel it, right?" Bion asked. Kumatora shrugged. "It's here, you just need to concentrate…" The young man closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and raised his hand as if attempting to grasp something. There was a bright flash… and…

To Be Continued...

Hope you guys enjoyed it! It's short, but it's getting to some other parts. I may have another part up soon, once I work on those breaks in the other chapters. See you around!


	5. Chapter 3

Hey there! Here's some more! Hope you enjoy it!

Oh man this is so old, I keep having to fix a whole lot of things, and even then it's not as good as I do now. I apologize; perhaps someday I'll make this even better!

For now, however, I will put this up for those who still want to read more. Thank you for reading, and I'll see you around!

* * *

Colors. Colors of pink and purple and yellow and red. Duster's eyes boggled at how… BRIGHT the place was. It couldn't be natural, it just couldn't!

"Welcome to Magicant!" Bion shouted in delight, standing before the group and spreading his arms out wide to accentuate the beauty of it all, "This is my home!"

"Oh… my head's hurting…" Kumatora groaned, clutching her head in pain.

"More of that psychic pressure?" Snake Rope asked her.

"No, the colors just make me want to cry uncontrollably…"

"But either way, this isn't a time to talk about the world. Your friend is sick, right?" Bion asked. He beckoned for the others to follow him. "Come on, this way! I know a wonderful doctor who'll take care of you! Over here, to this house!" And with that, the teenager was off, rushing towards one of the rather strange fire engine red buildings. Duster sighed lightly as he looked around Magicant, and he adjusted his hold on Fuel one last time.

"Hey Fuel, you'll be okay soon, alright?" The teenager groaned a reply, and the two followed Bion to the house he had rushed into. Duster poked his head into the dark room and took a step inside. "Hello? Bion said there was a doctor here for Fuel… he's sick, and he needs help. Can you help us…?"

"I certainly can!" came a familiar voice. The doctor turned on the lights, and Bion was dressed in a lab outfit with a stethoscope around his neck. Where he got it would forever be a mystery to all. "I'm the doctor! I can take care of him!"

There was a stunned silence for only a moment, after which Kumatora went into a frenzy. "If you could heal him beforehand, why didn't you! We had to endure this stupidity because you wanted to be dramatic!" Duster had to hold her back while holding precariously onto Fuel. "I'm going to rip off your head and suck out your…"

"Kumatoraaaaa!" Duster cried. Fuel groaned in pain at being mishandled, and Kumatora remembered her place. As long as the kid could get medical attention, it'd be fine… for now… She calmed down for the moment as Bion approached and checked the kid over.

"This should be a snap! Ready?" Bion touched his two index fingers to Fuel's forehead and concentrated. "Healing Beta! Lifeup Gamma!"

It was in a flash that Fuel winked his eyes open and struggled in Duster's grip. "Hey! I feel much better now! Thanks a lot, Bion!"

Bion laughed aloud as Duster struggled to remain upright while holding the bouncy kid. "No need to thank me, I always wanted to meet friends of Master Lucas!"

"About that…" Duster began after putting the now energetic teenager on the floor, "Why all this 'Master Lucas'?" He frowned as he thought of the way the name was used. "I suppose I'm not used to it, but it's just that, hearing it from your mouth like that, it reminds me of…"

Duster felt Kumatora grasp his ear and drag it so she could whisper venomously into his ear, "I swear Duster, if you say that, I. will. kill. you."

Duster realized that Kumatora had been thinking the same thing he had. He decided that it would be best to let the subject drop. "I mean… you think you could bring us to Lucas?" Kumatora released his ear with a glower and he rubbed his now red lobe lightly. "…please?"

Bion thought for a long moment. "Well… Master Lucas shouldn't be disturbed… but I'm sure I can ask Her Majesty if you're worthy to take the test to meet him…"

"T…Test!" Fuel and Snake Rope cried in unison, "I didn't think tests were going to be involved in this!"

"Either way, just take us to this queen lady. Maybe we could learn more about this Magicant if we travel it," Kumatora announced, "All in favor?"

"Aye!" came the united voices and the raised hands. Everyone turned to Bion, who had joined in with the favoring. He chuckled lightly under their stare.

* * *

It wasn't too far off to say that wandering through Magicant was very crazy. There was a mercat that waved at them as she swam in the ground, and a satyr welcomed Bion home. "Hey Bion! Do you have those seashells you promised to show us?" the satyr asked.

"Here they are," Boin replied happily, showing the creature his bundle of shells, "I found them on the beach."

"You're really lucky, Bion…" The satyr said, completely ignoring those behind the person he was talking to, "You get to go see the beach… what I would give to be able to see what you call the 'ocean'…"

"Woah…" Duster muttered as the satyr walked off, "you'd think with you being the only human around here, they'd treat you a little differently…?"

"What are you talking about?" Bion asked, "I'm not the only human here. Her Majesty is one of Magicant's humans, and my brother is too."

"You have a brother?" Fuel asked, looking excited. He rushed forward to catch up with Bion and talk to him some more. "Wow, lucky! I always wanted a brother!"

"Yeah, my brother's the greatest. You should meet him, Fuel. You'd like him." The two boys talked amongst each other, and Duster and Kumatora smiled at one another. It was nice to see Fuel so happy again. Fuel practically grew up alongside Lucas and Claus, so seeing him be able to have fun with another person made them feel a little better about his wellbeing for now. "You wanna go see him before we meet with Her Majesty?"

"Hey! That'd be cool!" He turned around to plead with his compatriots. "Can we go, Duster, Princess?" He begged the two.

Duster sighed good-naturedly and Snake Rope looked to Kumatora. She shrugged with a smile. "Alright, that's fine," she said. She then put her hands on her hips. "Just stop calling me 'Princess', alright?" Fuel chuckled an apology.

"Oh, but first, I think there's someone you should meet. He's really helpful, and likes to make maps." Bion grasped Fuel's wrist and dragged him off. "He's this way!"

"Maps, huh?" Duster said, thinking lightly, "It sounds a lot like…" He was stopped short as the group came upon a mysterious looking man in a suit, sitting on a bench in the middle of Magicant. "…M…Mapson!"

"Mapson's here in Magicant?" Kumatora couldn't believe it. She approached him suspiciously and apprehensively. "Hey, Mapson?" The map man looked up from his bench. "What are you doing here in Magicant? Did Bion bring you here too?"

"Hmm? Oh, yes," Mapson said. He dug around in his bag and handed off a map of the realm. "I'm not actually Mapson, you see. This entire world of Magicant is a figment of Lucas' imagination. In other words, you're walking through his mind."

"Oh, is that it?" Kumatora asked, looking over the map thoughtfully, "I thought it was something like wait WHAT?"

"It's true, you know," Bion said. He explained a little more carefully. "Magicant lives in Lucas' conscious. Everything that is here is something Lucas remembers or has dreamed up as he lived."

"So wait, we don't even know where he is, but we're in his mind?" Fuel looked a little mad at this thought. "Why can't we go see him, then? We're sitting in his mind, so we should be able to find him!"

"It's just that…" Kumatora began. She folded up the map and explained, "You can be in someone's mind and not be even close to him. That is… the rule tends to only apply to psychics… Lucas… his power must be incredible to be able to house you, Duster and Snake Rope in here without any problem."

"I… I see…" Duster murmured.

The group fell under a deep silence for a while, but Bion spoke up again, "Hey! Master Lucas can sense you're here, you know! Maybe if we speak to Her Majesty, Master Lucas will be able to tell you if you're worthy to see him!"

Kumatora looked a little skeptical, but Duster seemed optimistic about the idea. "Come on, let's try." Fuel smiled brightly as the musician ushered the group on. "Hurry, you guys! Let's go meet with Lucas!"

"Hurray! Our search is over!" Snake Rope proclaimed.

* * *

Magicant Castle was actually very similar to Osohe castle. Sure, Lucas was a bright, imaginative boy, but he probably thought that anything that wasn't broken shouldn't be fixed. Outside of the castle stood many of Tazmily's residents, which seemed to put the group off a bit (especially Fuel, who was able to stare straight into the eyes of himself only two years younger). Each would happily call out for Bion's attention, and would ask him to meet with them again. The teenager truly was a member of the magical land. However, there were a few people that didn't seem to be a part of Magicant. Duster looked practically everywhere, but he couldn't find a replica of himself or Kumatora. When he asked Bion about it, the kid shrugged. "I dunno," he said, "I haven't seen you anywhere around here. Maybe Lucas forgot about you two?"

Duster and Kumatora turned to stare at each other, but before they could inquire further, Bion rushed off to talk to someone who stood at the entrance of the castle. "Hey guys, look! It's my brother!" Bion called to his new friends. They looked up at the young man's brother, and they stopped dead at whom they saw. "Claus! How are you?"

"Eh…?" Claus looked up at Bion as the psychic teenager approached him, "Good afternoon, Little Brother! Are you up to catching Magic Butterflies together?"

"Not today, Claus. I'm taking Master Lucas' friends to meet with Her Majesty." He gestured to Kumatora, Duster, and Fuel, who were staring at Claus as if they had seen a ghost. Which they should be, really.

"Oh, I see." Claus said, looking terribly uninterested in them. It would be rude to ignore them though, so he spoke to them gravely, "You'd better take care of Bion, and if you're rude to Her Majesty, I'll unleash the worst type of psionics on you and you'll be begging for death!" Kumatora glared back at Claus for the kid's lip and Duster shuddered. Even now, ever the violent kid… especially about the queen… Who could it be to have such a strong impact on Lucas's figment of Claus?

"Can we go, please…?" Fuel began, his lip bitten in sadness, "I don't really wanna look at him…"

Bion turned to Fuel, and Claus looked away. "Come back soon, Bion. We'll play with Drago and his son then, alright?"

"Right! See you, Claus!" He waved goodbye to his brother and led the others on. They stared blankly at Claus, who seemed not to care about them.

"Suspicious outsiders…" Claus hissed under his breath when he was sure they were out of earshot, "What does Lucas see in them…?"

* * *

The inside of the castle seemed very similar to the original Osohe castle, down to the very hallways and the spa that was hidden in the basement. Kumatora found herself looking around with a fond remembrance. "This was… this was my home…" she murmured, looking around and touching the walls of the castle, "Oh man, Lucas, to remember this exact detail… such a wonderful boy…"

"Shall I take you to the throne room to meet with Her Majesty?" Bion asked, snapping Kumatora from her stupor. She turned around and asked Bion to let her lead instead.

"Oh, oh, can I? I want to explore a little more. Please let me lead!" Kumatora found herself saying a little too fast. Bion shrugged lightly.

"I… I suppose that's okay," he said, "I don't mind at all. Lead the way, Kumatora! On the way to the throne room!"

"Alright!" Duster chuckled under his breath and motioned for Fuel to walk before him. And so Kumatora took the lead, followed by Bion, Fuel, and then Duster. Osohe's princess explained what each room was, which ones were booby trapped with things that were supposed to keep thieves out (and failed miserably against Duster's prowess), and which ones she used to hang in with the good ghosts.

"And this one, my friends, is the throne room!" Kumatora explained with a flourish. She opened the door and placed her hands on her hips, "So, who's this 'Her Majesty' anyway?"

"Woah…" Fuel murmured in awe.

"Who's that?" Snake Rope asked.

"…How long has it been since I've seen her…?" Duster mused.

"Welcome, everyone, to Magicant Castle," the queen said with a smile. She sat on a throne and was dressed in the finest of silks. A crown of magnificent gold was upon her head, and she held an alabaster scepter in her hand. "My name is Queen Hinawa. How may I aid you?"

To Be Continued...

I always assumed that everyone has their own Magicant, which is just your mind's world. Ness had his Magicant that could house him, the Magicant in Mother 1 could be Maria's (she was a powerful psychic and connected to the rest of the world through her death, thus allowing others to enter it), and this one has Lucas's Magicant. How he is able to house everyone in his mind, well... I'll leave that to speculation for now.

Hope you guys enjoy it so far! Thanks for reading!


	6. Chapter 4

This stuff is mostly fluff to continue the story. Blech, one of my least favorite parts. It'll pick up soon though, I promise!

READ ON!

* * *

It was quite obvious that because Lucas loved his mother and looked up to her so much that even now he would place her memory as the ruler of everyone in his mind. As the kindhearted queen listened to the pleas of the travelers, she appeared to be deep in thought. "So you have left the comfort of your home to search for Lucas?" she asked, as if she didn't understand from their first explanation.

"Yeah," Kumatora replied, "We promised Boney we'd bring both he and Flint back. You have to help us find them, Hinawa!"

"I see…" Hinawa said. She stayed seated on the throne and thought for a moment, as if debating with how she should answer the group. Eventually, she addressed the travelers with a sincerely sorry look on her face. "I am very sorry, Princess Kumatora, but I simply cannot abide by your request."

"What?" Fuel shouted with eyes wide.

"Why not?" Snake Rope cried in shock.

"There must be a reason. Why can't we see Lucas?" Kumatora demanded, "We've traveled so long and we're sitting in his HEAD. Why can't we see him?"

"It is because he doesn't want to see you," Hinawa replied softly, placing her hands in her lap and looking the other woman straight in the eyes.

"You're lying!" Kumatora screamed. Duster reached out to calm her, but she batted his hand away and continued, "You're lying! Lucas would never say something like that! Lucas is our friend! Lucas would WANT to see us!"

"There… there is a way you can see him," the queen said, in an attempt to calm the rage within the former princess, "Lucas said that those who could pass his test could see him…"

"I don't understand. Why has Lucas done this, Hinawa?" Duster asked. He stepped forward slowly and nodded at the woman; it had been so long since he had spoken to her. He hadn't met with her much, since he was too busy training to be a thief, and he was just a little too old to be a proper playmate for her kids, so when he had heard she was killed… He was a little glad to be able to speak to her now, as he regretted never doing it enough when she was alive. "There's a reason he's doing this, I know there is. Can you tell us?"

"I am sorry, Duster," Hinawa said, looking extremely sincere about her answers, "But I cannot tell you. The only way you can meet with him is if you pass the test… he has specifically ordered it."

"Ordered it…" Kumatora hissed, "Ordered it! I'll rip his lungs out for that!"

"Maybe that's why he doesn't want to see you, Princess…" Fuel muttered. Kumatora slammed her fist on the teenager's head and he gave a shout of pain.

"But for the moment, before you decide anything to do from here on out," Hinawa began. She stood from her throne and addressed the visitors from another world, "perhaps you would like something to eat?"

"Did you just say…?" Fuel suddenly looked up after rubbing the goose-egg on his head.

"Food?" Snake Rope finished for the teenager.

"Humph, like that's going to distract ME," Kumatora grumbled.

"For now," Duster said, trying to approach it from another side, "We can't do much on an empty stomach. Let's have something to eat and pass this test. It can't be that hard, can it?"

"Way to jinx it, Duster…" The former princess groaned as the foreigners followed Bion and Queen Hinawa from Osohe Castle.

* * *

It was so nice to be able to eat real food: food they had eaten before the destruction of Nowhere Island. Duster sighed as he picked up the fluffy omlete on his fork and inspected it. "You know, we really need something other than all this protein…" The musician groaned aloud.

"Whatever," Kumatora replied, ignoring his pleas. She turned away from the man next to her and went for someone who may listen to her more. "Hey Fuel, have you tried this fluffy omlete shish-kebab? Mmm, pure ambrosia! How do you keep it on there like that, anyway?" Duster found that it really didn't do them any good to complain, and besides, they hadn't eaten something so good in forever! Hinawa was the best cook ever, and after nine days of eating nothing but berries and nuts, this was by far the best thing they could ever have hoped for (aside from finding Lucas and completing their journey, of course).

"Oh, there you are!" Duster said happily as Snake Rope slid across the table they were sitting at. The snake nestled himself near the musician's hand and he looked down expectantly, "I was a little afraid the denizens would find you appetizing. Did you find anything to eat?"

"Nothing particularly tasty… Nothing wiggled at all…" Snake Rope bemoaned his fate as Duster nodded sagely and rubbed his friend's head with a massaging finger and a sympathetic ear. "I swear, Bion wiggled a slab of meat in front of my face as if I would actually find that appealing…"

"Don't worry about him. He just doesn't know anything about you." Duster then blinked. "Wait, where did Bion find a slab of meat?"

"I don't even care, unless it can direct me to something living that I can eat," Snake Rope muttered, closing his eyes and savoring the ministrations his friend was giving him.

"Did you at least eat something? We can't have you going hungry."

"I ate, I ate…" the snake replied, yawning widely and falling asleep, "I just didn't give that Bion the honor of eating HIS meat." The musician smiled as the snake nestled down and snored silently.

"So, Duster." The man blinked and turned to the side. "If you're finished petting your boyfriend…" The musician gave Kumatora a half banked stare as she continued, "We should probably start talking to Hinawa about how to take this test."

"Oh, oh right," he agreed, "Shall I go find her?"

"If you would~" she said with a smirk. Duster nudged the snake awake, who begrudgingly slithered up his friend's arm. After wrapping himself snuggly around Duster's shoulders, the musician was off to find Magicant's queen. Fuel noticed he was leaving, and didn't want to be left behind. He hopped up, waving for the "princess" to follow, and Kumatora sighed. She didn't want to leave all this nice food… Stuffing one more slice of pear in her mouth, she shouted with a full mouth for the men to slow down.

The group found Bion first, instead of the queen. Duster asked if he knew her whereabouts. "Bion, can we go speak with Hinawa now? I think everyone's ready for this test she's been talking about," he said nicely. Bion looked at the group and smiled brightly.

"Yeah, Her Majesty said that if I found you, I was supposed to take you to the room where we conduct the Test," Bion replied matter-of-factly. He beckoned the others to follow him, "come on, I'll show you where it is." Kumatora half expected him to suddenly whirl around and surprise them with Lucas's appearance like he did when he healed Fuel, but unfortunately, he was only a moron when it didn't help them at all. Of course.

The former princess began to cool her angry thoughts down by the time Bion had them enter a suspiciously familiar room in Osohe Castle. Duster immediately recognized the place: it was the room where he had fought Mr. Passion the first time he entered the castle. It seemed like an eternity since that time, but looking at it now, it was really only a few years ago…

Queen Hinawa sat on a couch on the opposite side of the room, a smile on her face. "Are you already prepared? You're just like Lucas: so punctual and always ready for what's needed of you."

"Yeah, don't mention him right now," Kumatora said flatly, "What's the test, anyway? It'd better not be like 'battle Sir Passionstein Mk. 2', because no matter HOW many times he comes back, no matter how many times he changes the color of his suit, and no matter how many times he gets 'more powerful', there is no way he's going to be able to get the drop on us." She punched Duster lightly on the shoulder (and the musician rubbed it with an indignant cry of pain), "So what's the test? Duster and I'll take it down in a heartbeat!"

"What about me?" Fuel asked, "I'm helping too!"

"Oh yeah, and Fuel will help," Kumatora said dismissively.

Bion had by this time moved across the room to stand by Queen Hinawa, and the woman smiled. "Right then, Bion, if you would."

"Yes, Your Majesty!" Bion proclaimed, taking a few steps forward. He put his hands on his hips and shouted in a rather loud voice, "Alright you guys! You now face the awesome power of Master Lucas's first guardian, Bion!"

There was silence for a moment, and Kumatora snorted, trying desperately not to laugh, "You honestly think that you alone can take on the three of us at once?" She asked rhetorically.

"You've never actually seen me fight, have you?" Bion said smugly, puffing himself up with a smirk, "We'll see who laughs last! Although I hope it's me, because I want to laugh best!"

Fuel blinked, Kumatora continued her snarky smile, and Duster slumped in defeat. He really thought all that "randomly-fighting-people-he-would-rather-have-tea-with" stuff was behind him, but it seemed like it was only the beginning. He suddenly remembered that there was a snake on his shoulder, and he turned to Snake Rope. "Hey, you think you should sit this out? If you're afraid to get hurt, you might not want to stay in the middle of the battlefield…"

"As much as I assume Queen Hinawa's lap is nice and comfy, I'd better be with you in this battle." Snake Rope winked at the musician. "You never know when a snake with rope characteristics will be useful in a heated battle against a rather annoying young kid who thinks too highly of himself!"

Snake Rope was right: Duster DIDN'T know if the snake would be needed. It didn't seem very likely, but who was he to deny his friend a spot in the group? "Alright, just stick with me then. Are we ready, Kumatora?"

"As I'll ever be! Let's finish this test and meet with Lucas!"

"Alright!" Fuel proclaimed, pumping his arm into the air, "This is going to be so cool!"

"I won't lose!" Bion exclaimed.

"Let's just all be friends after this, alright?" Duster asked. Either way, however, the group prepared their battle against the new, temporary enemy, waiting for the battle proper to begin. And they waited. And they waited.

About a minute of doing nothing, everyone blinked and turned to Queen Hinawa. She stared ahead and then smiled. "Oh! Did you want me to announce the beginning of the battle?" She asked in a singsong voice. Kumatora groaned, and Duster wished that they could be as carefree as she was at the moment… "Well then, are you ready? Begin!"

Bion rushed the group immediately, catching Kumatora off guard. She gave a gasp as he whipped up a large metal pole; Kumatora remembered seeing that in someone else's hands… With a shout, he slammed the pole straight into her face. Duster gave a shout of alarm and Kumatora groaned in pain as she reached up to touch the thick line of red across her face. The former princess swayed back and forth in a desperate attempt to get her bearings, and Duster rushed forward to catch her as she fell backwards.

Bion took a small step back as Kumatora counted stars, and he twirled his bo expertly in his hands. He surveyed the damage he dealt; smiling at Fuel and Duster as they tended to the former princess. "See, you guys! I told you that you should have- hey wait what are you DOING!" Bion gave a cry as Duster immediately retaliated. The young guardian lifted his pole in defense, but Duster's sweeping roundhouse kick was so hard, the pole slammed into the young psychic's face and he was soon sent to the ground. He sat up, slightly dazed, and he touched his nose. "Hey! I'm bleeding! You made me bleed!"

"No one hurts Kumatora…" Duster said as Fuel helped Kumatora up and Bion scrambled up and away from the group, "…and gets away with it without serious repercussions." Fuel blinked in surprise at how quickly Duster had moved. He never looked more aware of his surroundings then now. The teenager turned to Kumatora, who was still a little wobbly and was trying not to lean on Fuel so much. Did it have something to do with her…?

Bion grumbled a bit at the new, almost intimidating guy, but he wouldn't let it deter him. He adjusted his broken nose and touched it lightly. "Lifeup Alpha!" And that was when they noticed the catch. The kid wasn't really much of a powerhouse hitter, but he could heal everything they sent at him. If they decided to drag this battle on, it'd be tiring to finish, especially if they wanted to win.

"Alright then," Kumatora hissed, grasping Duster's sleeve and pulling him into a quick emergency huddle, "How do you stop a kid from using his psychic powers?"

"You ruin his concentration?" Fuel thought.

"Right," Kumatora replied, "Duster, if you would?"

"With pleasure!" The musician replied. He may not exactly be a thief anymore, but he still held on to the important items every post apocalyptic thief wouldn't be caught dead without. He gave just one look at Bion; the child gulped at the strange glint in the man's eye. In a flash, he was twirling two rather large staples in his hands dexterously. Bion suddenly had a fleeting thought to turn around and run, but it was too late…

KATCHAT, KATCHAT, KATCHAT!

The young psychic suddenly found himself stapled to the wall; his clothes hung him up nicely, and two staples had even squashed his fingers to the wall. Duster twirled two extra staples in his hands, making sure that the child was properly restrained. After making sure everything was fine, he slipped the staples away, and let Bion attempt to escape.

"Hey! This isn't fair!" the guardian shouted, flailing ineffectually, "You guys are cheating, ganging up on me like that! Lemme down! This is totally not fair!"

"You talk too much!" Kumatora said. She began to concentrate on a spell. "Shut up for a moment! PK Thunder Gamma!"

Thunder and lightning crashed all around them, and the bolts jolted Bion fiercely. Duster turned to Kumatora. "Just Gamma?"

"I wanted to go easy on the kid…" the former princess said, putting her hand on her hip, "I mean, he DID heal Fuel."

"How benevolent," the musician replied as he looked at Bion, who was coughing smoke and jolting about from the excess electricity surging through his body.

"Paiiin… hurts…" Bion moaned. He twitched lightly, and then slumped forward and stopped moving.

"Oh my," Hinawa murmured, looking rather surprised at the brutish art of war, "D… does that mean Bion's out of commission? Bion, you aren't going to keep fighting in that condition, are you?"

"I wanna be let go," Bion groaned, "You guys win. You cheated, but you win."

"I told you that you couldn't beat the three of us at once," Kumatora said, snapping her fingers. Duster understood the signal and went to let the kid down. "Hell, Fuel didn't even do anything."

"But I would have if you needed me to!" Fuel spoke up quickly.

"Sure you would," the former princess replied as Duster hefted the psychic from the wall and tenderly set him down, "Good try though, Kid. So, we passed the test and everything, right? Now you get to tell us where Lucas is."

"Well…" Hinawa was about to speak, but Kumatora silenced her with a sigh.

"I should have known it wasn't going to be this easy," she muttered. Turning to Magicant's Queen, she placed her hands on her hips and demanded an answer, "So what do we do next? Do we have to beat the ever living snot out of Bion again?" She pointed to the psychic with a flick of her thumb, and Bion hid behind Duster in fear of the woman.

"I'm afraid not." Hinawa said with a shake of her head, obviously not realizing Kumatora was being sarcastic (maybe), "Bion was only the first of many guardians that Lucas instituted for his protection."

"Protection of WHAT?" Kumatora shouted.

"Let her finish, Princess," Fuel said. He then dodged a swipe from Kumatora for using the nickname she hated and speaking to her so rudely.

"That, I'm not at liberty to say," Hinawa said continued, "However, Lucas has been sure to keep himself protected, and so only those who are truly worthy of seeing him will pass the test."

Kumatora turned around with a hiss and began to pace like a caged lion. "That makes no sense. If no one else has passed this test, why does Lucas think this will make people worthy to see him? Something's amiss. Just leave it up to a kid to think up something this moronic."

"Hey!" Fuel shouted, clearly taking offense to being called a kid (as Lucas and he were practically the same age).

"Kumatora, the most we can do right now is humor Lucas," Duster said as he watched her pace, "Don't you agree?"

"Humor Lucas by letting him treat us like second rate slobs?" The woman turned to her friend, and he sighed as she continued, "You know that YOU would never treat him like this. He's being… he's acting just like…"

Duster held his breath, waiting for her to admit it. "Like…"

"Like a spoiled BRAT." Kumatora spat the last word out as if she had tasted something bitter. Duster closed his mouth and didn't speak again, but the more he thought about it, the more it worried him. He knew that Kumatora had the same thing on her mind as he did, but he let her remain in denial for now if it helped her cope.

"E…Either way…" Hinawa trailed off, although she was trying to politely collect their attention. It was won, so she continued, "If you want, you can look for Lucas on your own. But if you don't want to do that, you can find the guardians. If you defeat them all and pass the test, then Lucas will definitely come to you. It really is your best bet so far."

"Yeah, it won't be that hard," Bion said, a smile on his face. He already healed himself with his psychic abilities and bounced back as if he had never been assaulted. "If you could beat me, this should be a snap for you to beat everyone."

"However, there's something I don't get," Fuel said, "I mean, fighting these guardians is all well and good, but how do we find them? I doubt they'd all be sitting here in Magicant."

"Oh, yes, Fuel, you're right." Bion was able to explain further, "But I know where each of them is. Master Lucas always says I should take some time off and see the world he made…" Bion then chuckled nervously and looked at the group. "You think I could come along with you and show you where each of the guardians are?"

There was silence for a moment, and Kumatora wrested Duster from the heights so the group could have a group huddle. "Alright team. What do you say? Should we take this snot with us?"

"Can we?" Fuel asked, looking hopeful, "He's like this little brother I never had. I'd be cool to have someone my age with us."

"Yeah, well, this kid will just get in the way," Kumatora retorted, "We have no good reason to take him along, so we shouldn't."

"I agree!" Snake Rope said, "That guy tried to feed me dead meat! He even had the gall to wriggle it! What do I look like, a moron to be duped like that? I say he can go straight to…"

"Duster, you're the tiebreaker," Kumatora said, "Fuel and I say yes and no, so it's up to you."

"Wait!" The snake with rope characteristics cried, "What about MY vote?"

"Well, I was thinking…" Duster began, rubbing his mustache in thought, "That you may be wrong, Kumatora."

"What was that?" She hissed dangerously.

"Hear me out," he continued, hoping that she wouldn't smack him around any, "I mean, he is useful, and there is a reason we should bring him along. If we go it alone, it'll take much longer to find Lucas, don't you think?"

Kumatora glared at Duster through eyes that resembled slits. She hated it when people debated against her arguments with ones that made sense. She glared for a bit at the child who stood away, waving a bit at the three. She let out a sigh and groaned a bit. "Fine, fine, he can come."

"Hurray!" Fuel proclaimed, throwing his arms into the air.

"Totally not fair! Why would she give you tiebreaker status and not ME?" Snake Rope cried, staring over at Duster as he straightened up, "I'm just as much a member of the group as you are!"

"Yeah, well…" Fuel muttered, cradling the back of his head in his hands, "You're not a guy."

Snake Rope glared at the kid as Kumatora went to thank Hinawa for her assistance (and give her some tips on how to dress as royalty), "What are you talking about? I am most certainly…"

"You're not a 'human' guy." Fuel interrupted, smiling a sagely, knowing smile.

Duster stared at the teenager. "Are you insinuating something, Fuel? I'm right here, you know."

The young man gave a gulp and looked up, "What? I didn't say anything!"

Duster looked away with a sigh, trying to ignore the teenager. "Kumatora, are we ready?" he asked the woman as she dragged Bion into the circle of friends.

"Yeah, I guess," she muttered, glaring at the other psychic, "So, Kid. Where do we go from here? You're in the lead, so start leading."

"Right!" Bion said, smiling at his new friends, "Follow me, everyone!" He rushed off, and Kumatora followed, grumbling all the way. Fuel waved goodbye to the queen and rushed after the former princess, and Duster looked at Hinawa.

She smiled back. "You'd better hurry up if you wish to keep up," she said.

"You really can't tell us?" Duster asked, "You can't tell us anything? There must be something."

She suddenly spoke up quickly, as if she was saying something illegal. "Please don't tell the others. Lucas doesn't want them to worry." The musician was taken aback by her words, but listened intently as she continued, "He remembers you all very well. I just wish…" She began to tremble, as if she were fighting back tears. "…I just wish he missed you more…"

Duster stared at the queen and turned silently. Something weird was going on in Lucas's head, it seemed. He wanted to make it right again. He spared one more glance at her saddened figure before he hobbled from the room, asking the others to slow down and wait for him.

To Be Continued...


	7. Chapter 5

Hope you guys enjoy this one~

* * *

"So this is it?" Duster asked, reaching out to touch the small hair that grew from the ground like an ever tangled weed, "This'll get us out of here?"

"Where will it take us?" Fuel asked.

"Wherever I want it to," Bion replied. Kumatora stared at him. "At least, wherever Master Lucas feels the most at home in. For instance, a cave by the sea, with the sounds of the ocean rocking back and forth… it's very meditative, and even I would feel happy there."

"So…"

"Each of the places we'll go… Master Lucas has chosen specifically. He placed the Guardians there to guard the leylines," Bion chuckled at what he said, "For lack of a better word. So now we just go from place to place to find these various guardians. Sounds simple, right?"

"Simple enough, I suppose," Duster said, "So where are we going first?"

"The plains!" And Bion grasped the hair.

* * *

Caves. What did Lucas see in caves? They had appeared in another cavern, and Duster felt a little worried for his friend's sake. Lucas feeling at home in the darkened caverns didn't say much for his mental wellbeing. Hinawa didn't want them worrying about Lucas, but the more he thought about it, the more Duster worried; he just couldn't help it. "Alright, are we ready?" Bion asked, snapping Duster from his thoughts, "Onward to the first guardian!"

"Right, right," Kumatora said, taking the lead and growling at everyone to keep up, "I just can't wait until I get out of here and… and…" She stopped when she left the cave; her eyes went wide and she smiled brightly.

"Hey, hey, what is it, Princess?" Fuel asked as he ran to catch up with her. She smiled brightly and whirled around.

"Everyone… everyone, it's a TOWN!"

* * *

It made sense now. The cave was manmade, probably by the townspeople that dwelt only a few miles away from the group. It appeared that they were mining the useful minerals within the mountain, but that it wasn't the town's main source of living. Overall, the town worked on ranching for their livelihood. As Kumatora rushed towards the town, they passed by dozens, if not hundreds, of goats, sheep, pigs and cows. Each pack of animals was being cared for by a dog/fish chimera, in other words, Bow-wow Fish. The various Bow-wows were sleeping, and their masters were doing their best to herd the sheep to keep them from straying, and they didn't seem to want to bother with the newcomers as long as they didn't seem to pose a threat to their charges.

The people of the village looked up at the outsiders for only a moment, and then they went directly back to their work. Kumatora blinked; the youngest members of the town were working as shepherds and caretakers of the animals, while the elderly members were working in the town proper. Most of them seemed to be examining things; very few were actually working on things that were useful to the wellbeing of their livelihood. There was a blacksmith that was forging steel (which made Fuel's eyes light up in delight, but Kumatora dragged him back until the group found where the guardian was located), and an inn that had most if not all of the village's cooks working around the clock for everyone in the town. Everyone decided that was the best place to look for information, as everyone went there on their time off of work.

Kumatora opened the door to the inn, and saw that it was actually a saloon; while there were rooms to rent out to the extremely rare traveler, it mainly served as a restaurant for everyone who had worked hard during the day. People of all sorts (although almost everyone in the town wore glasses, which seemed very strange to the travelers) were settling into the restaurant for their breaks. The former princess approached the woman at the bar. "Uhm…?"

"May I help you, suspicious travelers?" the woman asked. Duster then realized that most of the people in the restaurant were staring at them.

"We need information," Kumatora said, sitting down at the bar table, "We're looking for anything unnatural that may be around here. Anything that seems to be… guarding something?"

The woman at the bar seemed to glare at Kumatora through her half moon spectacles. Kumatora stared back, obviously not afraid of the woman's intimidation tactics. Finally, the woman set down the glass she was cleaning and stared into the other female's eyes. "What's it to you? We don't… we don't take very kindly to strangers. Who knows what kind of people you guys really are?"

"What's wrong?" Duster asked, "We've been getting these looks every since we entered the town. Is it because of something else that happened before we arrived?"

The bartender licked her lips, and leaned against the bar. "You guys weren't there before the island was destroyed, were you? The Chimera Lab?"

Kumatora's jaw dropped, and she leaned in closer as well. "That's who you are? The people who worked there?"

The woman tapped her glasses, and many took it as a cue that she was more comfortable with the guests. Most turned away and returned to their food. "We're the scientists that the despicable Porky kidnapped. Most of us had no choice. He attacked our hometowns, kidnapped us from various points in time, and even held our family and children as incentives to keep us working for him. Still others…" She gulped lightly, "Others were dumped in that gelatin, that 'Spa', and came out revering him. Can you believe that the scientist who made that gunk actually was working for Porky by his own will?" Her fist clenched and she slammed her fist on the counter. "After we were given a second chance at life, there were still others who would still exalt Porky as if he were god himself."

"What happened to them?" Fuel asked, ever hopeful that there was an awesome battle between the two factions of scientists that ended up in some cool explosions and special effects.

"They left without so much as an awesome battle with cool explosions or special effects," The woman said, making Fuel sigh with boredom and look away as she continued, "They said that they needed to find him. They said that he couldn't be dead. They said he was immortal."

Duster and Kumatora looked at each other, and shrugged. Whether immortal or not, the capsule that they had left him in hadn't been found. Who knew if it even existed anymore. They were glad that his supporters were on a wild goose chase at least. Either way, the lady then stared at them again. "What about you guys? You aren't supporters of Porky, are you?"

"Of course not!" Fuel shouted, as if angry that she would even assume so, "We're residents of Tazmily Village. Or… well… New Tazmily Village."

"I'm sure you heard of Lucas? He infiltrated the lab those few years ago," Kumatora said, "Duster and I were the ones who were traveling with him. It was us who helped stop Porky in the first place."

"Tall words for a woman who looks more man than woman," the bartender said. Kumatora asked if looking male was a problem (with another dangerous look), and the other lady shrugged. "I'm just saying, anyone could say something like that. What makes you think we can trust you with just word alone?"

"I can attest to that…" A voice in the back said. It was a strangely ambiguous voice, but familiar nonetheless. "I was there, after all." Everyone turned to the figure in the corner of the restaurant, who was sipping coffee and looking rather mysterious. The bartender seemed to recognize who spoke, and spoke up herself afterwards.

"Oh, you know that person? I didn't know! That person's been helping us for the longest time; we'd trust that person's word any day." She then went to continue talking to Kumatora, and Duster excused himself to speak to the figure in the back. He looked down at the mysterious person, who took another sip of coffee.

"It's nice to see you, Duster. How have you been?" s/he asked. Duster stared in silence at their friend who had helped them from the very beginning. He hadn't seen him/her since s/he left for his/her world.

"Well enough, you?"

"Depends…" s/he replied with a shrug of his/her shoulders. Their friend looked up at Duster with a smile. "It's certainly been a while, hasn't it?"

"It sure has. What are you doing here, of all places?"

Their friend shrugged when s/he thought about the question. "I guess I go to where the world needs me the most. Right now, this place needs all the help it can get to keep upright, so that's why I'm here. I guess the real question is 'why are you guys here?'"

Duster turned to look at the group, who was still talking to the bartender. "Well, it's because…"

"Don't tell me, you're looking for Lucas, right?" s/he asked. Duster took a step back in surprise. "Didn't you know? I'm psychic as well!" The musician gave a sharp intake of air, and their friend laughed. "Nah, I just noticed that Lucas wasn't with you, and you guys definitely wouldn't have left New Tazmily Village without him unless you were looking for him."

Duster blinked. "Oh." He should have known it was something that simple. "Well, you know, since you're here…" He gulped. "You want to come with us? We could all go and find Lucas together."

Their friend looked deep in thought. Another adventure across the new world? Finally, s/he shook his/her head. "Nah, I can't."

"Why not?"

"Because I just can't. I'll watch you guys though. You don't have to worry; I'll be with you every step of the way."

Duster was confused. "But how? How can you be with us if you don't come with us?"

Their friend smirked. "It's a secret." Duster sighed in defeat as s/he suddenly dug around in his/her pack. "But before you rejoin your friends, there's something that you guys may need." Duster blinked and looked down at their friend as it pulled out a small, yellow orb. Upon further inspection in the musician's hands, he noticed that it was a small doorknob, "I found it before I left for my world. I figured it'd be better in the hands of someone here."

"I guess…" Duster said, scratching his head, "What am I supposed to do with it?"

Their friend shrugged again. "How am I supposed to know? I just figure it'd be useful later on. Keep your hands on it; it has a tendency to get itself lost." Standing from the chair, s/he waved at the man. "I'll see you again, Duster. Take care, alright?"

"Right! Come visit New Tazmily sometime!"

"I'll see if I can!" And with that, their friend was gone, leaving a cold cup of coffee on the table. Duster stared after their friend for a while, and then he pocketed the small doorknob. Afterwards, he picked up the coaster and cup, returning it to the bartender. She thanked him and returned to speaking to the group.

"So we've been doing our best to use the chimeras for good. Can you imagine how nutritious an egg from our Poultry Snakes are? Small but packed with nutrition. Unfortunately (or fortunately, depending on how you look at it)…" She looked a little sad at the fact that: "We have no instruments to continue creating chimeras, and they're all sterile. None have ever been able to have children. So when the last Cattle Snake dies, there'll be none left in the world. It was so nice having milk from a cow that could protect itself, too…"

"Yeah, well… Oh, hey Duster," Kumatora said when she realized that he had returned to the group, "According to this lady, there's something strange deeper in the caves we came from. Apparently some big, sentient plant is keeping them from digging any further."

"You think it's the guardian?"

"What else can it be?" She shrugged lightly. "So we should head off there as soon as possible."

"Sounds like a plan," Fuel said.

"I don't think so…" Duster replied. The group stared at him, "When Kumatora says 'as soon as possible', she means 'now'. It's nighttime. You all really should get some sleep. We'll go find this second guardian tomorrow, alright?"

Kumatora grumbled and leaned against the bar, her head nestled in her hand and her frown spread from jaw to jaw, "Fine, whatever…" she muttered.

"Duster tends to save us a lot of times from the princess' orders," Fuel explained as he and Bion went off to a room on the inn's second floor.

The musician smiled nervously at the woman who was glaring at the children, and then turned to the bartender. "So… is there any…?" He really didn't want to mention payment. Money was always a tender term in New Tazmily after what happened five years ago and even now Duster didn't have much that would be worth anything. Gold? Silver? Please.

"Oh, don't worry about a thing. If you two take out that monster deep in the mines, we'll all be even. Sounds like a fair trade to me! Although… to get anything else in this town, you may have to put yourselves to work. You DO know how to work, do you?"

Kumatora gave a snort and hopped off the stool. "Yeah, we'll see what we can do…" She muttered.

"Oh, Kumatora," Duster began as he followed her up to the rooms above them, "you know it would probably be best if we worked off our tabs rather than trying to foist off anything unsavory…"

"And what do you know how to do other than stealing, hitting and instrument playing, oh so resourceful thief-warrior-musician?"

Duster opened the door for Kumatora and she walked into her room, and then it hit him. "I… I can tailor patches in torn clothes! Remember when Lucas tore his jeans? I just used the needle I borrowed from you and it was fixed in a few minutes!"

Kumatora laughed aloud at the thought of Duster dressed in an old maid's dress and apron, tailoring out the town's rips and tears like some grandmother. She then stared at him seriously. "No," The door was then slammed in his face. The man sighed and skulked off to his room, which he apparently was sharing with the teenagers.

* * *

After a few hours of getting the children to stop throwing pillows at each other (the entire room was soon filled with feathers from various fowl, chimeric or otherwise), Duster found that he wasn't going to be able to sleep at all during the night. He stared dutifully at the children as they slept in the only two beds in the room, sitting across from them and leaning against the wall. Truth be told, he always enjoyed the night more than the day, which was why he was always sleepy while out in the sun. Now, he felt much more alert, and his senses were working in overdrive.

Finally, he stood up and looked at the door. The town was fine, the children were safe… he didn't need to watch them. With a stealthy silence only a thief could master, he snuck from the room, closed the door, walked nonchalantly down the stairs, and out of the inn.

The night sky was so beautiful. Duster saw the galaxy spread a milky line across the sky like a white ribbon. He found it comforting to see that while the world had changed dramatically, the stars had not. They still formed the same constellations he had named when he was a child, and their brightness had not changed, either. They winked at him and shone as bright as they could so he could see, and he smiled at them as he stood on the steps of the inn.

The stars winked at him almost as if they were speaking to him through Morse Code, and Duster was sure they were saying hello to him. It had been so long since he truly stayed up long enough to get a good look at each of them. "Kumatora keeps saying that I should stay asleep during the night, and so I haven't stayed up enough nowadays. Maybe some time I can convince her to set me up as New Tazmily's night watch?" He chuckled at the thought.

Then, things became somber. "Hey… can you keep a secret?" Duster asked his friends. They winked back at him, telling him that they don't speak to many people other than him, so his secret was safe. Duster cupped his hand around his mouth at if he were speaking into the ear of a close friend, and spoke, "Lucas is acting weird. I'm afraid something's wrong. It's hard keeping secrets, so I'll tell only you. I don't like the way he's been acting. He seems a lot like…"

He shut his mouth at the thought, and he hunched a bit, whispering ever so quietly to the sky. "He's sounding a lot like Porky did…"

The stars didn't react. They didn't move, they didn't gasp, and they certainly didn't stop winking at him. It was as if they already knew this valuable tidbit. "You think something's wrong with him too? I'm worried. We'd better find him as soon as we can, otherwise…"

There was a sound! Duster immediately ceased his inane ramblings and looked at where the sound came from. A rustling was heard, and then the shuffling of feet. A figure came into view, but he was shrouded in shadows. He seemed weighted down by many objects, and didn't seem like he was actually harmful. Still, Duster called out suspiciously, "Who goes there?"

The figure looked up, and he scratched his head, "My, my, how long has it been since I heard that voice?" Duster blinked at the familiar voice. It wasn't their friend, but it was: "Duster, is that you?"

"Mapson?" The young man approached the former resident of the village. "It's been so long! What are you doing out here?" He then realized that the man was carrying all sorts of equipment from parchment to quills to self made ink. "Here, let me help you with some of that."

"Yeah, thanks," The graying man said, handing off everything that couldn't be destroyed easily (or wasn't worth as much as the other stuff). Duster was heavy laden with everything but a rolled up parchment and a quill. "It's nice to see you again, Duster. How have you been?"

"Doing well…" He replied, trying not to spill anything as Mapson walked into the inn. He placed a lantern on one of the tables, and settled himself down, "Are you making a map right now?"

"I was just outside, seeing if I could find a nice specimen for a new quill pen…" Mapson replied, "Unfortunately, the ranchers were already asleep and they wouldn't give me any Blue Bald Eagle quills."

Duster blinked. "But Mapson, it's like…" He edged to look out the window. He checked the position of the moon and turned back to the man, "its like, three in the morning. How could you ever believe that they'd ever be awake?"

"Map making never sleeps," Mapson replied matter-of-factly, scouring over his most recent creation, "I needed another one just in case this one got damaged in any way. Hey, hey, give me that ink!" Duster remembered he was still holding the map maker's items, and handed him one of the ink wells. Immediately he set himself to drawing a bit more from his sketches, "You're going into the caves to the southeast, right? You'll need a map if you want to meet that guardian."

"You have maps for that cave?" Duster asked, placing some of the items on the table and pulling up a chair. He watched with vested interest as Mapson continued his work.

"Indeed, I just haven't finished it yet," he said, gesturing to the parchment before him, "I also have an inkling that you may need my other maps for other moments in time." The man then pointed to the maps that Duster had been carrying beforehand, "For now, they're yours."

"Really? Oh, thanks Mapson! You're the best!"

"But those are my only copies!" Mapson pointed his quill at Duster, a menacing look on his face, "I worked on those maps like I was raising children. Therefore, if you ever ruin one of them before I am able to make copies…" He glared at the musician, and the light from the lantern gave him enough spooky lighting that he resembled a monster from the deep. Duster took a step back in horror. "I will personally see to it that you are properly… 'rewarded'…"

"I…In what way…?" Duster asked, holding onto the maps for reinforcement as he stared into the flaming eyes of hell itself.

Mapson blinked, and sat back down. "Well… I never thought about it…" He said, making Duster sigh. How anticlimactic! "But I know you'll take good care of my maps. You did so before, so I'll wait for you to return those."

The musician nodded, and after taking the time to remind himself that Mapson was actually a nice guy and not the spawn of the devil, he sat back down to watch the master at work. "When will you get this done, by the way?" he asked.

"You can't rush art," the other replied, still working meticulously. Duster sighed and looked outside, watching the stars. Sure, it was through a glass pane, but at least he was able to see them…

…And yet they faded all too soon, and daylight began to peek over the horizon. "Ahhh, there we go…" Mapson checked to make sure the map was properly dry, and then he rolled it up and handed it off to Duster, who was holding the other precious parchments, "Take good care of them. I must be off to the next town. This world has not been mapped out properly."

"Y…yeah. Thanks. See you again." Mapson nodded in return, tilted his hat to the fellow villager, and soon was gone. The musician looked down at the map of the Miltiades Mine, and read it off. The tunnels certainly enjoyed winding about. He'd have to remember to keep a close eye on where they were going. Finally, he pocketed the map and went to sneak back into the room at the inn. He just needed a little bit of sleep… daylight always made him sleepy…

The door in front of him suddenly opened and slammed into his face. Duster gave a soft cry and grasped his nose as Kumatora walked out, ready to meet the day. "Ahhh! It's so bright out, I'm sure I can…" She closed the door and stared at Duster. "…You're awake?" she asked suspiciously, eyeing him with distrust, "Already? Usually I have to drag you up so we can go."

Suddenly, realization hit her. She stood up on tip toes and inspected his face, and then retreated when Duster rubbed his eyes and yawned, "BAGS. I knew it. You stayed up all night, didn't you?"

"Huhwuh…?" Duster asked.

"Oh, for the love of all that's…" she placed her hands on her hips and tapped her foot quickly. It wasn't hard to tell that she was pretty steamed. "Duster, we NEED you during the day, not the night! Night is… uhhhg… Humans are diurnal creatures, if you've forgotten!"

"You know what 'diurnal' means…?" Duster asked, stifling a yawn.

"You can form coherent sentences?" Kumatora retorted. She twirled the man around and shoved him on the back to make him march, "Maybe you aren't as tired as you look. See if you can get someone to make you some food. You'll need it."

"Yes Ma'am…" he muttered, shuffling back down the stairs. So much for sleep…

As the two walked down the stairs, two boys poked their heads out of their rooms to watch the goings on. "And that, Bion, is how Duster and Kumatora wake up every morning," Fuel said, feeling like a professor teaching his pupil.

"Every morning?"

"Every morning."

"But what about the days he does sleep during the night?"

Fuel looked down at Bion. "He sleeps during the night?"

Bion shrugged. "I dunno, does he?"

A sigh escaped the older teen's lips, and he strolled off. "Whatever, let's hope there's something nice for us to eat," he cupped his hands around his mouth and shouted for the snake sleeping in the men's bedroom, "Hey! Snake Rope! Get out here! We're leaving you behind!"

"Nooooo!" The snake screeched, slithering across the floor and attempting to catch up with the boys, "Wait for me, please!" Bahman town was alive and well by this moment in time, and it was nice to see so many people as the four sat around the table. Bion (who had picked Snake Rope up beforehand) handed the red snake off to Duster, who thanked his new friend.

"What do you want to eat, Snake Rope?" Duster asked the snake while staring at him like a zombie might when he wasn't out searching for brains.

"Something that's not cooked," came the simple reply.

"Right, maybe you can try stealing something from the Poultry Snakes. They won't miss a thing," Duster replied. He stood up and began to leave the inn. Kumatora whirled around in her seat:

"Duster!" She called, "You need to eat something! You're going to go…!" But it was too late; he had already left the inn. The former princess whirled back around and crossed her arms… crossly… "I swear, that moron cares more about Snake Rope than he does…"

"Abouuuuuut?" Fuel asked with a smile.

Kumatora ground her teeth, "Than he does the mission…" She hissed. Fuel sat back and played with his spoon by sticking it on his nose. All of this was so totally boring…

To Be Continued...

* * *

I wonder if anyone can guess who that strange friend is...! Maybe it shall be a secret forevermore~


End file.
